What Doesn't Kill Us
by amberissmiling
Summary: The violent attack of two students at McKinley shakes the entire school. Finchel central, with violence in the beginning. *Written during the London riots*
1. Chapter 1

Rachel parked her car in the school parking lot, checking her mirror to make sure her hair looked okay. She sat back in her seat and sighed, looking at McKinley High. It was her senior year and everything had changed. She was in love with the quarterback of the football team…and he actually loved her back. She had real friends. This year was going to be awesome.

Smiling to herself, Rachel grabbed her bag and got out of the car. The parking lot was almost deserted; school didn't start for another hour. Finn had to be at school early for a football meeting, so she'd decided to come early too, to meet him when he was done. He'd told her that he'd come pick her up after the meeting was over, but she hadn't wanted to put him out. They'd been on the phone until one last night and she knew he was going to be exhausted.

As she walked to the school, she thought about how crazy it probably was to have spent all day with him yesterday and still be so excited to see him this morning. The summer had been amazing; they'd both had part time jobs, but they'd spent all of the time off together. Rachel had been a frequent guest at the Hudson-Hummel home and her dads had started treating Finn like a part of the family.

Walking into the school, she took a deep breath. Last year she'd been excited about the new year too…and it hadn't gone at all like she'd planned. This year would be different, she knew, but she couldn't help the slight twinge of anxiety she felt. Karofsky had stopped bullying the Glee Club, but there were always more people prepared to take his place. Putting a clean set of clothes in her bag this morning, Rachel had sent up a silent prayer that this would be the year she wouldn't need them. She'd be fine with never having another slushie facial. More than fine. She knew her Glee Club friends felt the same.

Walking past the boy's bathroom, Rachel heard sounds of a struggle. Pausing, she closed her eyes. Had it already started? Walking closer to the bathroom door, she put her ear against it, trying to figure out what was going on. She couldn't understand everything the low voices were saying, but the words "lesbian" and "bitch" were clear. Before she thought about what she was doing, Rachel opened the door and ran into the bathroom.

Two large football players had Santana pushed against the wall. Tears streamed down the girls face and there was blood in the corner of her mouth. Rachel gasped. The larger football player looked back and her and yelled, "Grab her!"

"What are you doing?" Rachel screamed before the other boy got to her and covered her mouth with his hand. Fighting him, Rachel broke free and took a deep breath to scream again. Before she could, his large fist connected with the side of her face, causing her to drop to her knees and pass out for a brief moment.

"No!" Santana screamed, pulling away from the bigger bully and knocking over the boy that had hit Rachel.

"Run, Santana," Rachel told her, still dazed. "Get Finn."

Santana ran out of the room. "Get that bitch," the bigger bully told his friend, grabbing Rachel's hair and jerking her up. "I've got this one." The other boy ran out of the bathroom after Santana.

When Rachel was standing, she spit in the boys face. At any other time she would have been horrified by such an act, but she didn't even realize she was going to do it. The boy backhanded her, pushing her against the wall. Pain shot through Rachel's head and her knees went out. The boy held her up, not letting her fall. "Think you're brave, huh?" he said lowly. "I know who you are. You're Hudson's bitch."

Rachel shook her head to clear it, her eyes finding the bully's. "You're dead," she told him.

"I don't think so," the boy told her. Rachel heard an odd sound and then felt the cool edge of a blade against her neck. "Here's what I see happening," he said conversationally. "My buddy Zeke is going to bring that carpet munching bitch back here and he and I are going to have a good time showing her the error of her ways." He licked Rachel's face, causing her to shudder. "Or maybe I'll leave her to him and I'll spend my time showing you what a real man would feel like between your legs. You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Rachel closed her eyes. He pulled her head away from the wall, and then slammed it back into it. Rachel cried out and opened her eyes. "Look at me, bitch. You'd like to feel a real man between your legs, wouldn't you?"

Rachel shook her head and moaned. "Leave me alone," she told him, unable to stop a sob from escaping. She wanted Finn. She wanted Finn to come into the bathroom and save her, hold her, make her forget any of this had ever happened. She felt the boy's hands move roughly between her legs and she moaned, bile rising in her throat.

"And the best part is," he was saying, "if you say anything, I'll hurt your boyfriend. Hudson wouldn't be much of a quarterback if a knife found its way into his shoulder, would he?"

Rachel shook her head. "Don't you touch him," she told the boy, hating the way her voice shook. "Don't you ever touch him."

The boy bit Rachel's neck, his hand moving under her panties. "You high school girls are so easy," he told her. "Threaten the person you care about and you're willing to do anything."

"Stop," Rachel said, sobbing. "Stop."

The boys tongue plunged into her mouth as he roughly shoved his finger inside her. Rachel pushed at him frantically, but he was so large her efforts had no effect. "So tight," the boys said, rubbing himself against her. "So sweet. Does Hudson know how sweet his little Berry is?"

Rachel closed her eyes, thinking of Finn. She would just think of Finn. Not what was going on, not the pain this boy was inflicting on her, just Finn. She felt the buttons rip off of her shirt but kept her eyes closed. When the boy bit down on her breast she cried out, but didn't open her eyes. "When I'm through with you, you'll leave school and go home to get cleaned up," he told her. "Maybe I'll sit with you and Hudson at lunch. Would you like that? I bet you'd like that."

Rachel felt tears escaping from her closed eyelids but couldn't stop them. How could this be happening? She couldn't let this happen. Bringing her leg up, she felt it connect with his crotch. While he doubled over, she ran for the door. She thought she'd made it when his hand caught her hair, pulling her back. She fell on the floor, her head hitting it so hard she literally saw stars.

"I don't think Zeke is going to make it back," the boy said. He walked over to the door and turned the lock. "May as well make sure no one else bursts in."

Rachel cried harder as he walked back towards her.

In the hallway, Santana ran as fast as she could but Zeke caught up with her. Knocking her to the ground, he rolled her over and hit her. "Don't make a sound, bitch," he told her. "You're coming with me."

Santana's head rolled to the side, consciousness slipping away from her. The last thing she saw before she passed out was Finn and Puck running towards her.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Puck yelled, tackling Zeke. Finn kicked the other guy when he was on the ground, then ran to Santana. Puck's fist hit the other boys face repeatedly as Finn kneeled beside the unconscious girl.

"Santana," Finn said. "Santana, wake up." He noticed the bruises and bite marks on Santana's face and neck and felt sick. He looked over at Puck and saw that though the other boy was unconscious, Puck hadn't stopped hitting him. "Puck," he said, rushing over to his friend and pulling him back. "Puck, stop, he's out."

Puck swung wildly at Finn, then realized what he was doing. Looking over at Santana, he said, "Is she okay?"

"I don't know, man, she's out too."

The boys knelt next to the girl, trying to rouse her. When Mike and some of their other teammates came around the corner, Finn said, "Go get Coach Beiste!" Nodding, the boys ran back the way they came.

Santana's head rolled up slightly and her eyelids fluttered open. "Finn?"

"Yeah," he said. "You're going to be okay, Santana. Coach Beiste is on her way."

Puck held her hand and she squeezed it. "Rachel," she said, feeling the darkness creeping in on her again.

"She's not here yet," Finn told the other girl.

"He's got…Rachel," Santana said as the darkness took over again.

Finn felt the blood drain from his face. He stared at the unconscious girl as his heart stopped beating. "What?" he said. Shaking Santana's shoulder, he said again, "What?"

"Dude, let her go," Puck said, pulling Finn up.

"Rachel," Finn said desperately, looking at Puck. His friend looked sick. "We have to find her."

Puck nodded. "Stay with her," he told a girl who'd walked up. The girl nodded, sitting beside Santana. They began running down the hallway, Finn screaming Rachel's name. The students that were at school stood in the halls and watched, confused and frightened.

Rachel lay on the floor, arms pinned above her head as her attacker roughly squeezed her breasts. She stared at the wall, no longer crying out every time he bit or pinched her. Her tears had stopped as well. Some part of her realized that she was in shock. The boy rose, slapping her hard across the face. "Wake up, bitch," he told her. When that didn't work, he grabbed her chin with his fingers, forcing her to look at him. "I knew you would want it, baby," he told her. "You smell so good." He ran his tongue over her nipple to her jaw. He ripped away her panties, settling himself between her legs.

Unbuckling his pants, he paused, listening. "Fuck," he said, furious. He could hear Finn and Puck calling for Rachel. He looked around the bathroom, trying to figure out how he could get out. There wasn't any other way but the door. He maybe had time to get out of the bathroom before the other guys got down this far. He'd have to stop what he was doing, though, and he didn't want to. He wanted this bitch to scream. Stupid cunts, coming to school in short skirts and tight shirts, teasing him and then acting surprised when he grabbed their asses. This bitch was worse than most. She acted so innocent and sweet, but he knew she wanted to fuck. She wasn't fighting him, was she?

"Do you hear Hudson screaming for you?" he asked her. "I bet he doesn't know you're lying in the floor begging for some of my dick, does he?" He rubbed against her and she didn't move. "Rachel! Rachel!" he mocked quietly. "He hasn't been inside of you yet, has he, Berry?" He chuckled quietly. "Won't it break his heart to know that you gave it up to me first?" He kissed her. "Every time you're together he'll know that I was there first. I was inside you; I made you moan and scream." He released her hands and rose so that he could finish unbuckling his pants.

Finn and Puck ran through the hallways, opening doors and checking room. Coming up to the boy's bathroom, Finn pushed it but it wouldn't open. Pushing again, he realized it was locked. Pounding on the door, he screamed, "Rachel! Rachel, are you in there?" he didn't wait for an answer, using his shoulder as a ram to break the door. "Rachel!" Puck joined him.

Hearing Finn's voice, Rachel blinked. The bully was moving down on top of her. "No!" she screamed, kicking at him and moving backwards. "No!"

Finn heard Rachel screaming and almost fell down. Throwing himself harder against the door, he heard it begin to crack. Again and again he and Puck hit it, until finally it broke open. Finn ran into the bathroom, watching as a large boy hit Rachel in the face. A ringing started in his ears as he ran for the boy, knocking him over.

Quinn, having heard the commotion, had followed Puck and Finn. Seeing Rachel on the floor, bruised and bloody and exposed, she quickly turned towards Brittany. "Don't let any other kids in here," she told the girl, then ran to Rachel. "Rachel?" she said, kneeling beside the girl. "Oh God, Rachel." She took off her over shirt and laid it across Rachel's lap, pulling Rachel's shirt together as much as she could. Taking the girls hand, she looked in her eyes. "It's going to be okay, okay? Everything is going to be fine." She hoped the tears streaming down her face didn't belie her conviction in her words. She looked over to where Puck was trying to pull Finn back. Quinn barely recognized Rachel's attacker as Finn was pulled away from him. "Finn," Quinn said quietly.

Leaving the boy on the floor, Finn crawled to his girlfriend, gathering her in his arms and rocking her, whispering soothing words to her. Puck dragged the other boy, John, out of the bathroom. As he passed, he looked at Quinn and she saw the pain in his eyes.

Ms. Pillsbury and Mr. Schue ran into the bathroom, Ms. Pillsbury turning and putting her hand on Will's chest to stop him after seeing Rachel's condition. "I think you should wait outside, Will," she told him softly. "Or go try to find a blanket." Stricken, Will nodded.

"An ambulance is on the way," Emma told them. "Santana is still unconscious. Coach Beiste thinks she may have a concussion." Quinn nodded, but Finn didn't acknowledge that he'd heard her. He began singing, his voice thick with tears. Rachel hadn't moved, keeping her eyes closed. Emma was certain the poor girl was in shock.

They sat together, in the floor of the bathroom, until the paramedics came to get Rachel. Wrapping the blanket Will had brought around her, Finn looked up at the paramedic. "Can I carry her out?" he asked, his voice hoarse. "Can I just carry her?"

The paramedic cleared his throat and looked at the two women in the room. "We need to put a neck brace on her," he told them. Emma's eyes pleaded with him. "You can carry her to the ambulance," the man told Finn, looking back at him.

Finn nodded, standing with Rachel in his arms. Quinn tucked the blanket around Rachel tightly and followed behind Finn as he slowly walked towards the door. Will was waiting outside the door, where a small crowd had gathered. He'd tried to push them back, but they wouldn't move. "Her fathers will meet you at the hospital," Will told Finn. Finn nodded.

The other Glee Club kids were standing behind him, horrified looks on their faces. The hall was completely silent except for Finn's hushed words to Rachel. Finn kept his head low, his lips near Rachel's ear as he told her she was going to be okay; that he was there and everything was all right. Tears ran unchecked down his face as he walked to the ambulance, letting Rachel go long enough for them to put her on a stretcher and then climbing into the back with her, holding her hand.

Watching the ambulance leave, Quinn dissolved into tears, turning into Ms. Pillsbury's arms. Though she rubbed Quinn's back and told her that Rachel and Santana were going to be okay, she couldn't stop herself from crying along with the girl.

The Glee Clubbers came out to stand with Quinn, Will and Ms. Pillsbury. "I'm going to the hospital," Kurt told them. Blaine held his hand and nodded.

"We should all go," Mercedes said.

Principal Figgins walked up to Will. "The police have taken the attackers into custody," he told Will gravely. "I am cancelling school for today. I need to meet with all teachers as soon as possible. I realize that you and Ms. Pillsbury will probably go to the hospital, but as soon as you can I'd like you back here for the meeting. We'll postpone it until you can return." He shook his head. "This is a terrible thing, Will. A terrible, terrible thing."

Will nodded. "We'll be back as soon as we can be," he told Figgins.

"I'll go make the announcements," Figgins told him. "Please tell the girls parents that I will visit the hospital myself as soon as possible and how truly sorry we are that such a thing occurred in our school."

"I'll tell them," Will told the man. Figgins nodded, looking pained, and turned back towards the school.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day at school, Figgins called a meeting for all students in the gym. "As I'm sure you're aware, there was a violent attack in this school yesterday. The perpetrators have been arrested and the victims hospitalized." He cleared his throat. "While we have never had an incident of this magnitude at our school, we have suffered over the past several years from rampant bullying. It has come to my attention that many of my students cannot walk through the hallways without fearing some form of physical or mental abuse." He shook his head. "We can no longer allow this behavior to continue. Before I get into school policy changes and school safety issues, Finn Hudson would like to say a few words." He looked back to where Finn was standing in the shadows.

Finn walked forward, stepping up to the podium as Figgins moved aside. Looking out at the student body, his mind was once again with Rachel. He had hated leaving her side, but knew that this was something that needed to be done.

"I'm Finn Hudson. Most of you probably know me. I'm captain of the football and basketball teams and a co-captain of the Glee Club." Someone in the audience snickered. "Yeah, being in Glee Club is funny, right? Only losers could ever be a part of something that lame." He looked over to where his friends from the club were sitting. "But we're not losers. We're talented. We've been to New York City and came in _twelfth _out of the entire nation. We're awesome. But most of you wouldn't know that because you're too concerned with how uncool Glee Club is to realize how amazing it is to be a part of. And it's not just Glee Club; there are so many kids in our school that have talents and abilities you couldn't dream of.

Just because someone's dream is different from yours doesn't mean that they're less of a person. Just because someone dresses different or acts differently from you doesn't mean they're pathetic or something to be mocked. It is time that the bullying stopped.

The Bully Whips helped, but what we need is a strict no tolerance policy…and that's what we're getting." He looked over at Figgin's, who nodded. "Starting in a couple of weeks, McKinley High will be an anti bullying campus. There will be zero tolerance. Your homeroom teachers will go over the rules and the consequences with each of you. Everyone will have guidelines and rules sent home with them that must be signed by you and your legal guardian.

Because of these steps, this school will be a safer place and our student population will be free from the mental and physical abuse that's held them hostage for so long. Physical violence in any form is included in this policy; there will no longer be brawls in the hallways." Finn sighed. "I know that I've been a part of what I'm now fighting against. I never thought about the damage I was doing or how much I was hurting other people until it started happening to me and the people I love." Thinking about Rachel again, Finn dropped his head. He took a couple of deep breaths. "This is over," he told the other students firmly, looking back up at them. "The hate and the bullying and the fighting…it's over. When I bring my girlfriend back to this school, it's going to be different. It's going to be better. It's going to be what she deserves." He looked at his friends again. "It's going to be what we all deserve."

Kurt stood up, clapping. This was everything he'd dreamed of since coming to McKinley; that Rachel and Santana had to be victimized in such a way to make it happen broke his heart though. Blaine quickly joined him, and soon every student was standing. Many had tears on their face.

Finn stood at the podium, watching the crowd. He saw kids crying, kids hugging each other, kids cheering. Everything he'd said had been true. It was time for the kids at McKinley to have a school that was safe. It was time for the fear to end. Will walked to the podium and put his arm on Finn's shoulder. Finn nodded in the direction of the crowd, then walked back into the shadows as Will spoke to the kids.

"You did an excellent job, Mr. Hudson," the principal told him, shaking his hand. "We're going to do everything we can to make this school safe."

Finn nodded. "It's too late for Rachel and Santana, isn't it?" he said, walking past the man.

"Finn," Emma cried from behind him. "Finn, wait!"

Finn stopped walking once he reached the back door, but he didn't turn around. Emma stopped behind him. "Finn, I am so sorry about Rachel," she said softly. "We all are."

"I'm sorry too," Finn said hoarsely. "I'm sorry that I didn't do something last year. I'm sorry that I had early practice and she had to come into school alone. I'm sorry that people like Josh and Zeke exist." He stood there for another moment. "And I'm sorry I didn't kill him for what he did to her."

Emma touched his arm, pulling him toward her. When he faced her, the pain in his eyes caused her to gasp. Stepping closer and hugging him, Emma felt him break down. His entire body shook with sobs and his arms wrapped around her. Rubbing his back, Emma realized that she was crying again. She couldn't seem to stop; she'd had to leave the hospital last night because she was unable to keep it together. Will had driven her home and then held her throughout the night. Her anxiety and obsessive impulses took a back seat to the pain that had taken hold of her heart.

"Don't think like that, Finn," she told him softly. "Both boys will receive the punishment they deserve."

"She won't even look at me," Finn said brokenly.

"She will," Emma promised him, still holding him. "She will, Finn."

"Even her dads can't touch her. Her whole body is bruised." Finn took a deep breath, pulling back. "What he did to her…I can't stand it. It hurts every part of me."

"That kind of violence does," Emma told him, wiping her face and watching him. "You, Rachel, Santana…Puck, Quinn, Will, myself…we'll forever be changed by this one event." She put her hand on his arm. "But we have to work through it. We have to have hope that it will get better. Have you seen Santana?"

Finn nodded. "She's going to be okay. She came by Rachel's room this morning before they let her go."

Santana had stood in the doorway, unable to look at Rachel. "I'm so sorry Finn," she'd whispered, crying. "This is my fault."

Finn had hugged her gingerly, mindful of her battered body. "None of this is your fault," he told her fiercely. "You did _not_ do this."

Santana sobbed into his shirt. "If I hadn't made a noise, she would have never come into the bathroom."

"And then you would have had to face them alone," Finn told her.

"Rachel didn't deserve any of this," Santana said, looking up at Finn with tear filled eyes.

Finn wiped a tear away from her face. "Neither did you."

Doubling over a little from the pain his words caused her, Santana struggled to take a deep breath. "Why did they do this to us?" she asked. "How could anyone hate us so much?"

Finn shook his head, looking over to Rachel's slight body curled up under a blanket. "I don't know," he had told her honestly.

Now, looking at Emma, he asked the same question. "Why did they do this? How could they hurt them like that?"

"Oh, Finn, I don't know," Emma told him. "I can't imagine what could have been going on in their heads."

Kurt found the couple. "We're ready to go, Finn, whenever you are."

Finn nodded at his brother, looking at Emma. "Are you and Mr. Schue going to come back to visit tonight?"

Emma nodded. "We are. I guess you'll be there?"

"I have to be with her," he told her. "The only reason I left her today was because of how important this was."

"You're good for her," Emma told him. "You're her hero."

Finn shook his head, walking off in the direction Kurt had gone. "No," he told her. "She's mine."

Will walked up and put his arms around Emma, watching Finn walk off. "Is he going to be okay?"

Emma turned around in his arms, putting her face against his neck. "Are any of us going to be okay?" she asked softly.

"I hope so, Em," Will told her. "I hope so."


	3. Chapter 3

Finn sat in the hospital chair, staring out the window at the parking lot below. Rachel still hadn't talked to anyone; she hadn't even moved from her position facing the wall in hours. Her dads had left to shower and grab some food, encouraging Finn to do the same. He couldn't, though. He needed her to know that he was here, even if she didn't want to see him.

"I'm heading out, man," Puck said from the seat against the wall. "I'm going over to Santana's house for a little while."

Finn nodded to his friend. "Thanks for hanging out, bro."

Puck slapped Finn on the shoulder. "I love you guys," he said gruffly, looking over at Rachel. "Call me, okay? If there's any change or if you need me or anything."

Finn smiled slightly. "I will."

Puck left and Finn looked back out the window. He wished it would rain. If lightning split open the sky, thunder shook the ground and rain pounded against the windows, he thought he'd feel better. He wasn't sure why, but he thought he would.

"Finn," Rachel said softly from the bed. His gaze flew to her.

"Rach?" he said softly, getting up and moving to the bed. Rachel's body shook with her sobs. Finn sat down cautiously on the edge of the bed. "Rachel?"

Rachel slowly turned to look at him. "It hurts," she told him, tears moving down her face.

"Oh, baby, I know," Finn told her, his hand brushing the tears away from her cheek. "I'm so sorry."

Rachel turned her face into his hand. "Will you hold me?"

Finn climbed awkwardly into the bed. "Are you sure, babe?"

Rachel nodded. "Please?" She raised her head and Finn put his arm under her, pulling her gently to him. She felt so tiny.

"I love you so much," he whispered. "I wish I could take all the pain away."

Rachel cried into his shirt as he held her. Her dads came quietly into the room and then backed back out. Finn nodded to them as they shut the door, then closed his eyes and whispered soothing words to her. "How's Santana?" she asked when her tears slowed.

"She's going to be okay," he told her. "She's worried about you." He sighed. "And blaming herself."

Rachel looked at him and it took everything he had to not flinch at the sight of the horrible bruises on her beautiful face. "Why would she blame herself? None of this was her fault."

Finn kissed her on the forehead, so glad that Rachel was still Rachel. "That's what I told her."

Rachel was quiet for a few moments. "I know the police have wanted to talk to me," she told him.

"Are you ready to talk to them?"

"I don't want to," Rachel said in such a small voice Finn struggled to hear her. "I don't want to think about it."

Finn's arms tightened around her. "I'll be with you," he promised. "You can lean on me."

"The things he said, Finn…" she shuddered. "He hates me and I've never even met him."

"It has nothing to do with you, Rach," Finn told her. "He hates everyone."

Rachel looked up at him. "He told me that he would hurt you if I told anyone," she told him. Shaking her head, she bit her bottom lip. "I would have let him do anything to me to keep you safe."

Finn let go of her and wrapped his fists in the bed sheets. "No, Rachel. Don't ever think like that. I can take care of myself."

Rachel shook her head. "Finn, he's insane. You can't protect yourself from him all of the time."

Finn looked into her eyes. "You have to trust me, Rachel. I can't…" he broke off, his throat tightening so much he couldn't speak for a moment. "If something happens to you, it hurts me worse than if it happened to me."

"That doesn't make any sense," Rachel informed him.

"Says the girl who was willing to be raped to protect me!" Finn said, frustrated.

Rachel was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry," she told him. "You have a point."

"Baby, there's no reason for you to be sorry," Finn said, rubbing her arms. "None of this, Rachel, is your fault. None of it is something you could have stopped. But please, Rach, for me…please don't think like that anymore. You fight, okay? You don't ever let someone take advantage of you because of me."

"I feel so stupid," she whispered, crying again. "I just didn't know what to do. I couldn't believe it was happening."

"I should have been there. I should have skipped practice and drove you to school."

Rachel shook her head. "You can't be with me all the time, Finn."

"But I want to be," he told her honestly.

"Life doesn't work like that," she told him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Finn asked her. "Maybe it will be easier if you talk to me about it before you talk to the cops."

Rachel turned her face into his neck. "I don't know," she whispered. Every part of her body hurt and she knew how bad she must look. "I look awful, don't I?"

"You're beautiful," Finn told her, kissing her hair.

"He didn't rape me," she told him suddenly.

Finn breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know if a rape kit had been done or not and he hadn't wanted to ask. The thought of it made him sick to his stomach and if he thought about it he couldn't breathe. "God, Rach," he said, crying again. "Thank God."

"I wanted to surprise you," she said, pulling her head back to look at him. "I baked you some cookies and was going to take them to you." She frowned. "I wonder what happened to the cookies?" She shrugged. "I heard a noise in the bathroom and realized something was happening to Santana. I couldn't just stand outside and let it happen."

"You should have come found me," Finn told her.

Rachel sighed. "I didn't think about it. All I thought about was wanting to stop someone from hurting her. I didn't realize how bad it was," she said softly. "I don't even like Santana. I'm pretty sure she's the devil."

Finn smiled slightly. "She's not the devil," he told her.

"I know," Rachel said, letting out a breath. "She's just always so sure of herself and so strong. I'm nothing like that. I wish I was."

"You are strong," Finn told her. "You're the strongest person I know."

"They were hitting her," Rachel told him. "Calling her names, threatening her. I couldn't believe it, Finn. I'd never seen anything like it. And Santana was crying, like she was broken." Rachel was quiet for a moment and Finn didn't say anything. "I'm not sure what happened next. All I remember is that Santana and that other big guy were gone and I was trapped in the bathroom."

"How long were you in there?" he asked her.

Rachel shook her head. "I don't know. It seemed like a long time. He kept hitting me." She shuddered. "And he kept touching me, everywhere. His hands were everywhere and I couldn't get away from him." Her breathing became harsh and she let out a soft cry. "He hurt me."

Finn wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly, kissing her tears away. He changed his mind. "We don't have to talk about it," he told her, not sure if he could listen to anymore.

Rachel looked at him. "I had given up," she told him. "I was just lying there, letting him hurt me."

"Rachel-"

"And then I heard your voice," she continued. "It woke me up. I realized what was happening and I knew I couldn't let him do it."

"And you fought him," Finn said. "You were fighting him when I got into the bathroom."

"I couldn't let him win," she said simply.

Finn smiled at her through his tears. "You didn't. You won, babe. You beat him."

"I did," Rachel said, smiling a little.

Finn kissed her cheek. "I was so afraid that you wouldn't want me to touch you, that you would be afraid of me."

Rachel stared at him with wide eyes. "You would never hurt me," she said. "I feel safe with you." Rachel had wanted nothing more than Finn's strong arms around her for as long as she could remember. Nothing would ever change that.

He saw a look of doubt creep into her eyes. "What?"

"Do you still want me?" She ducked her head.

Finn put his fingers under her chin and forced her to look at him. "Of course I still want you," he told her. "I'll always want you."

Rachel's chin quivered. "He touched me in places I've never let you touch me," she said, closing her eyes against the shame she was feeling.

Finn stared at her face for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Rachel, nothing that's happened has made me love you any less. If anything, I've realized how important you are to me and that I can't stand the thought of losing you."

Rachel smiled at him, grimacing when a cut on her lip stung. "You always know what to say to make me feel better," she told him, putting her head back on his shoulder. "I'm tired," she mumbled sleepily.

"Go to sleep, babe," Finn told her, pulling the blanket up over her with his free arm. "I've got you."

She was out before he finished talking. Finn laid in the bed holding her as a storm brewed outside. It matched the one inside his heart. He'd never felt so angry- or so powerless. He wanted to go back and finish what he'd started on that Josh kids face.

He tried to be strong for Rachel, but in truth he felt a little broken himself. In one moment, his entire life had changed. Things got real. Instead of the world revolving around him, he realized that there were things that could happen that he couldn't stop. He can't just go back to the happy but clueless dumb jock; that innocence had been taken away from him. While a part of him wanted it back, another part of him was grateful to realize he was growing up.

"Finn," he heard from behind him. He'd dozed off sometime during the storm.

"Yeah?" he asked groggily.

"Honey, the police are back to talk to Rachel," his mom said from beside the bed. "Do you think she'll be able to talk to them?"

Finn looked down at the sleeping girl. "I don't know, Mom, she's sleeping."

Carol nodded. "I'll tell them they'll have to wait or come back."

"Wait for a sec, will you? I need to run to the bathroom and I don't want to leave Rachel alone."

"Of course," she said, putting her hand on his arm.

Finn carefully slid his arm from beneath Rachel's head, kissing her hair. "I'll be right back," he told his mom, kissing her cheek for good measure. Carol nodded.

When he returned to the room he found his mom stroking Rachel's hair, crying softly. "Mom?" he asked, standing at the door.

Carol jumped up. "Oh, Finn, I'm sorry," she told him, wiping her face. "I didn't realize you'd come back in."

Finn walked to his mother and hugged her. He felt Carol grab onto his shirt. "She's so tiny," Carol said, crying. "So young. Something like this shouldn't happen to someone so young."

Finn held his mother and looked at Rachel, still sleeping. "She's going to be okay," Finn told her. "She's like you, Mom. She's strong."

Carol pulled away and smiled at him. "I'm so proud of you baby," she told him. "You've been amazing."

Finn shrugged. "I haven't done anything, really."

"You sat down with Principal Figgins and you told him about the anti bullying policy and you _demanded _he make it happen. You've spent hours reassuring all of your friends that everything is going to be okay. You've been here with Rachel, taking care of her, only leaving her side once." She shook her head. "You're an amazing man, just like your father."

"I don't feel amazing," Finn told her quietly. "I feel like I'm losing my mind."

"What's going on?" she asked him.

Finn sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. "I'm so pissed that someone would hurt her. When I think about it my ears start ringing and my heart beats so fast that I think it's going to come out of my chest." He looked at Rachel. "And when I look at her and I see all of the marks and bruises on her I want to cry. I get this weird feeling in my stomach and I feel like I'm going to be sick."

"I think you're feeling exactly how you should be feeling," she told him. She took his hand and led him to the chairs. After he sat down she did too, then looked straight into his eyes. "I wanted to die after you father did," she told him simply.

"Wait, what?" Finn asked her, shaking his head.

Carol sighed. "I did. It hurt me so much that he was gone that I didn't think I was going to make it. I didn't know what to do with myself; my entire life was misery. I could barely look at you," she said, then stopped, upset. "I could barely look at you, Finn, because you looked so much like him."

"Mom," Finn said, reaching for her.

Carol shook her head, waving him off. "Just listen, okay? I know how you feel, Finn. I know the hurt and the pain associated with a loved one being hurt. And I need you to know that you'll get through it. You, Rachel, Santana, everyone. You'll all come out of this stronger."

"I feel…different," Finn told her.

"You are different," Carol told him. "So is Rachel. And it will take some getting used to, but you have to stick together."

"I'll never leave her," Finn said softly, looking at the girl on the bed.

Carol smiled slightly at him. "Young love," she said, standing up. "It's a beautiful thing." She walked towards the door. "I'll go out and tell the police to come back later."

Finn stood up and hugged her. "Thanks, Mom," he said, squeezing her tightly. "For everything."


	4. Chapter 4

Rachel talked to the police the next day, leaning on Finn the entire time. She only cried once, and for that she was grateful. After she was finished, they let her go home. Her dad's insisted on driving her and since Finn didn't want to leave her, he rode in the back seat to their house. Instead of letting her walk to her room, he picked her up and carried her.

"Finn, I'm not an invalid," she admonished him.

"Maybe I just like to hold you," he told her. Smiling, she rested her head on his chest and let him carry her.

"Yell if you need anything darling," her dad told her, and she nodded.

Finn laid her gently on the bed, then pulled her shoes off. Rachel laughed softly. "What?" he said, pulling the blanket up her legs.

Rachel took his hand and pulled him up to where he was lying on his side beside her. "I'm okay, Finn, really."

Finn sighed. "You keep saying that, but I'm having a hard time believing it."

"Why is that?" she asked him, watching his face.

Finn shrugged, holding her hair with one hand and putting his other arm under her head. "How can you be fine when I'm still such a wreck?" he finally asked her, looking into her eyes.

Rachel's face softened and her hand came up to caress his cheek. "I know you're hurting too, Finn."

"It sounds stupid," he said, catching her hand with his and kissing it. "If you're able to get past it, shouldn't I be able to? I'm not even the one who was attacked."

"But you were," Rachel told him. "Maybe you weren't hit or kicked, but seeing someone you love being abused is a form of an attack."

Finn watched her for a moment. "I hadn't thought about it like that," he admitted.

Rachel kissed his nose. "Are you okay?" she asked him.

Finn rolled over to his back. "I don't know," he told her honestly. "I go from being insanely angry to insanely sad."

"Sad?"

He shook his head. "I don't know how else to describe it. Just upset."

Rachel put her hand on his chest. "You've got to let it go, love," she told him.

Finn nodded, turning his head to look at her. "I know."

"I know you're exhausted," she told him. "Why don't you take a nap?"

"Are you going anywhere?"

"No, I'll take one too."

Rolling back over on his side, he smiled at her. "That's the best idea I've heard all day." He closed his eyes as Rachel hummed something softly, quickly falling asleep.

He woke up when she screamed.

"Rachel!" he cried, turning over to find her thrashing around in her sleep. "Rachel!" He touched her arm but she jerked it away, still screaming.

"What's going on?" Leroy asked, running into the room.

"I don't know, she just started screaming," Finn told him, standing up.

"Baby," Leroy said, moving closer to the bed as Hiram came into the room. "Rachel, baby, wake up."

"Stop!" she screamed, crying. "Don't touch me! Finn! Finn, help me!"

Finn leaned over the bed. "Rachel, I'm here. Wake up, Rach," he said, taking her hands.

Rachel opened her eyes, her chest heaving. "Finn?"

"I'm here, Rachel," he told her softly, sitting down on the bed and pulling her up, wrapping his arms around her. "I've got you."

Rachel sobbed into his chest, putting her arms around him. Finn looked over to see Leroy holding Hiram, who was crying as well. "We'll come back up in a few minutes," Leroy told him.

Finn nodded. After they left, he pulled back from Rachel and looked at her. "What happened?"

Rachel shook her head. "It was just a bad dream," she told him. "It's over."

"Rachel, stop it," Finn told her.

"What?"

"Stop acting like you're fine," he told her. "It's okay to not be fine. It's okay to be messed up over this."

"But I don't want to be messed up over this," she admitted.

Finn smiled at her slightly. "I know, babe. But if you keep acting like you're fine when you're not, you're going to explode."

Rachel laid her head back against his chest. "When did you get to be so smart?"

"Not sure," he said.

"I was joking," Rachel told him.

Finn shrugged. "I'm not."

They sat in silence for a moment. "Your heartbeat is so strong," she told him eventually.

"You're listening to my heart?"

She nodded. "I like to. It makes me feel safe."

"It's yours," he told her.

Rachel looked up into his eyes. "Forever?"

Finn nodded. "Forever," he told her seriously.

Rachel smiled at him. "I really do love you," she told him.

"I know," he said.

Rachel's smile turned into a frown. "He was chasing me, in my dream," she said quietly. "I was at school but it was dark. He was running after me and I was trying to find you but I couldn't. All of the hallways led to other hallways and none of the doors would open. And he kept saying terrible, awful things." She took a deep breath. "He caught my arm and started pulling me towards the bathroom door but I kept fighting him and screaming for you."

Finn pulled her head back down to his chest. "I'm sorry, babe," he told her.

Her fathers came back into the room. "Berry Bear, are you okay?" Hiram asked her.

"I'm sorry, daddy," she told him. "I just had a bad dream."

"We've been talking, Rachel," Leroy said, joining his husband. "We think that you should see a counselor." When Rachel opened her mouth to say something he held up his hand. "You don't have to keep seeing her if you don't want to," he said. "But we think that you should see her at least once."

Rachel thought about it for a moment. "Who is it?"

"Ms. Pillsbury and Mr. Schue came by this evening while you were napping," Hiram told her. "Ms. Pillsbury gave me the card of a woman she said she's worked with personally."

"She says the doctor is very good," Leroy added.

Rachel looked at Finn, then back at her fathers. "I think that sounds like a good idea," she told him.

Both men let out a sigh of relief. "Your first appointment will be tomorrow," Leroy said.

"Didn't waste any time," Rachel mumbled.

Hiram smiled. "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Finn, I fixed you and Leroy a pot roast," he told them. "Does your mother care for you staying?"

Finn shook his head. "No, but I think I'll call her," Finn said.

"Go ahead," Leroy told him.

Finn kissed Rachel's forehead and went into the next bedroom to call his mother. After shutting the door he slid down it, putting his face in his hands and breathing deeply. Instead of calling Carol, he called Burt's cell phone. "Hello?" Burt said. Finn tried to talk but no sound would come out. "Finn? Are you okay?"

"No," Finn whispered.

"Where are you? Do you need help?"

Finn took a deep breath. "She just woke up screaming," he told Burt. "She had a nightmare and she couldn't find me. I wasn't there." He laid his head back against the door. "I wasn't there and I should have been."

"Finn," Burt said, "it's okay."

"No it's not," Finn told him. What did Burt know? He shouldn't have called him. "Look, just tell mom-"

"Listen to me for a minute," Burt said, cutting him off. "You know Kurt's mom died from cancer."  
>"Yeah," Finn said.<p>

"She was sick for a long time. I sat by her bedside for weeks; I didn't sleep, I didn't eat…Kurt was practically raising himself." Burt paused for a moment and Finn heard him clear his throat. "She finally talked me into taking Kurt to school one morning. She said that she'd be fine and that it would do both Kurt and I some good to spend some time alone together. So I took him." Finn could tell that the other man was on the verge of tears. "She died while I was gone."

"Damn," Finn said.

"Yeah," Burt agreed. "I wasn't there for her last moments. I wasn't holding her hand as she left this world. It almost killed me."

Finn nodded, though the other man couldn't see him. "I know what you're talking about," Finn told him. "That's how I feel."

"After a while, Finn, you realize that things happen the way they do for a reason. I still get upset when I realize she was alone when she passed…but I know that she sent me to be with Kurt for a reason. She was telling me that her time was gone, but Kurt was still there and he was still important. She was reminding me that I had a son to take care of, and she wanted me to do a good job of it." Finn could hear Kurt in the background singing, and he smiled. "And that's what I've done. I've spent the years since making sure that my son is happy and taken care of." Kurt's singing got softer and Finn could tell Burt was walking away from the boy. "Rachel getting hurt is bad, any way you look at it. But if everything happens for a reason, and I believe it does, then there's something to be learned from it. Do you know what I'm saying?"

Finn was silent for a moment, thinking. "Yeah. Yeah, I think I do."

Burt made a noise of agreement. "You let me know when you need to come home. Your mom and I picked up your truck from the hospital earlier."

"Thanks," Finn told him. "Really, Burt, thanks." He wasn't talking about picking up his truck.

"No problem," Burt said, understanding the boy. "I'm here any time."

Finn stared at the wall for a moment, then stood up. "Hey," he said, smiling at Rachel when he walked back into her room. She was sitting up in her bed, reading.

"Hey," she told him, smiling softly. "You talk to your mom?"

"Burt," Finn told her, sitting down on the edge of her bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," she told him. "I'm really sorry about that, Finn."

He shook his head. "Don't be sorry," he told her. He watched her for a minute.

"What?" she said, putting a piece of hair behind her ear.

"I was just thinking," he told her.

"About?"

"About how much has changed in such a short time."

"Oh yeah?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

Rachel laughed slightly. "Like?" she said, drawing it out.

Finn smiled at her. "Like the fact that I now realize that I don't want to ever be without you." She looked at him. "I know that you're going to New York after we graduate." She nodded. "We haven't really talked about it, but I know that we were both thinking that I'd be going to Ohio State or somewhere close."

Rachel frowned. "We've still got a year," she told him.

"A year isn't enough," he told her. "I don't want you to go to New York and me to stay here. I don't want to be away from you like that."

"I don't want to be away from you either," Rachel admitted.

"I'm going to go to New York too."

Rachel stared at him. "But what if you can't get into a school there?"

Finn shrugged. "There are a lot of schools there. I can get into one of them."

"But what if you get a football scholarship somewhere else?"

He smiled at her. "I'm probably not going to get one," he told her honestly. "And even if I did, I'd probably be the back up."

"Still, your school would be paid for."

"We can talk about this another day," Finn told her, leaning close to kiss her lips. "But know that I'm coming with you to New York."

Rachel's hand moved to his neck as she pulled him close for another soft kiss. "Okay," she said, smiling.

"I love you," he told her sincerely, his gaze firm.

"And I love you," she told him, wrapping her arms around him.


	5. Chapter 5

Santana slowly walked up the steps to Rachel's room, thinking several times about just turning around and leaving. She honestly didn't know what she was going to say…what does a person say in a situation like this? Brittany had offered to come with her, but Santana had told her that this visit was something she needed to do on her own.

Reaching Rachel's door, Santana knocked lightly. "Rachel?" She opened the door slightly. Rachel's dads (who actually seemed pretty cool) had told her that the girl was probably asleep and to wake her up; Rachel had an appointment in a couple of hours and she needed to get up anyway. "Rachel?" she said again, moving into the room.

Rachel and Finn were lying on the bed, his arms around her. Santana stood and looked at them for a moment. Santana stifled a gasp when she saw the bruises on Rachel's face and arms. Finn's eyes opened and he looked at her. "Hey," he said sleepily, stretching his legs out.

"I can come back," Santana said, backing towards the door.

"No, wait," Finn told her. "Rach," he said softly in the other girl's ear. "Hey, baby, wake up. Santana is here to see you." Rachel mumbled and turned in his arms, sighing. Finn smiled down at her. "Rachel," he said again, this time a little louder. "Honey, you need to get up."

"Finn," Rachel groaned, stretching out and yawning. "Hush."

Laughter shook his large body and he winked at Santana. "And here we thought she was a morning person."

"I am a morning person," Rachel told him, awkwardly sitting up, brushing her hair out of her face. "Usually." She saw Santana. "Oh," she said.

"Hey," Santana said, unsure of herself.

"I'm going to go talk to Leroy," Finn said, kissing Rachel and climbing out of the bed. "Yell if you need something." He nodded to Santana as he passed her.

"Hi," Rachel said, watching the other girl. She and Santana had matching bruises.

"Hey," Santana said. She looked around. "Um…"

"Come sit on the bed," Rachel told her, smoothing out the blanket.

Santana moved to the bed. She looked at Rachel. "I'm sorry," she blurted out. "I'm so sorry you got hurt, Rachel." Tears fell down her face.

Rachel leaned close to her and hugged her. "I'm sorry you got hurt too," she told the other girl.

"I feel like it was my fault," Santana said.

"It wasn't," Rachel told her. "It wasn't either of our faults. The fault rests solely on the boys who did this to us."

Santana nodded, pulling back to look at her. "Are you okay?"

"I think so," Rachel said. "I hurt."

"I do too," Santana told her. "I can't sleep."

"I'm not sleeping too well either," Rachel admitted. "I keep having horrible nightmares."

"Same for me," Santana said. "My mom wants me to see a shrink."

"My dads set me up an appointment with one for this morning."

"Do you think it will help?" Santana asked her.

Rachel shrugged. "It can't hurt."

Santana thought about it. "I guess you're right." She sighed. "I told my parents that I'm in love with Brittany," she said after a moment. She watched Rachel's face for signs of shock.

Rachel smiled at her. "That's good. What did they say?"

"They said that they knew," she said, shaking her head. "I guess everyone knew but me."

"Well, at least you don't have to try and hide it anymore."

"But is this what I'm going to have to deal with?" Santana asked, feeling tears once again fill her eyes. "Guys trying to rape me to prove to me that I like men? How stupid is that? And what if…" she trailed off, looking at the wall. "What if someone tries to hurt Brittany?" she whispered. "I couldn't handle that."

"Josh told me that he would hurt Finn if I said anything," Rachel told her. "I've never been so terrified of anything in my life."

Santana nodded. "They told me if I said anything next time it would be Brittany."

Rachel shook her head. "I would have done anything to keep Finn safe."

"I felt the same way about Brittany," Santana told her.

"We're both crazy," Rachel said, smiling and shaking her head.

"Yeah," Santana agreed, smiling slightly back at her. "Have you and Finn talked about the new school policy?"

Rachel nodded. "I'm so proud of him. This anti bullying policy is exactly what McKinley has needed for years."

"I just hope it will work," Santana told her. "I'm so afraid it won't." She shrugged. "Plus, you know, I have to stop bullying people."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "There is that."

"I think I was mean to other people so that they would be scared of me. If they were scared of me, they wouldn't look too closely at the things I was hiding."

"Well, you did a fantastic job," Rachel told her. "You terrify everyone."

Santana grimaced. "I'm sorry, Berry. Not just for," she motioned to their faces, "this, but for everything I've done to you. You didn't deserve any of it."

"It's okay," Rachel told her, realizing that it was. "It made me a stronger person." She smiled. "I'm certainly not going to miss it, though."

Santana laughed. "I guess not." She looked towards the door. "You and Finn are going to make it this time, huh?"

Rachel grinned. "I really think so," she said. "He loves me."

Santana nodded. "Yeah, he does."

"Well speak of the devil," Rachel said as Finn came back in the room.

Running his hand through his hair, he looked at the girls. "I have to tell you something," he said.

Rachel's smile fell from her lips. "What is it?"

"There was another attack at the school," he told them.

Santana gasped. "Brittany?"

Finn shook his head. "Brittany is fine." He took a deep breath. "It was Artie."

Santana's hand flew to her mouth. "Artie?" Rachel cried. "Is he okay?"

"He's on his way to the hospital as a precaution," Finn told them. "A teacher interrupted the attack, so he's not hurt too badly. Tina said that he's more shocked and upset than anything." He looked at Rachel. "I need to be there for him."

Rachel jumped out of the bed. "I'm coming too."

"Rachel," Finn said, holding her. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"I'm going, Finn," Rachel told him.

"I'm going too," Santana said. She pulled her phone out. "I have to check on Brittany. I'll see you guys there, okay?" She was dialing Brittany's number as she walked out of the room.

Rachel looked up at Finn. "I need to be there for Artie," she told him. "For all of our friends."

Finn sighed. "Get changed," he told her. "I'll tell Leroy to reschedule your appointment."

"Hey," she said, holding on to his arm as he turned to leave the room.

"Yeah?"

"Can you help me out of my shirt?" she asked him uncertainly, biting her lip. "It hurts when I try to do it."

Finn nodded. He gently lifted the oversized shirt, stretching it so that it would go over her arms easily. When he had it off, he looked at her. "Rachel," he said, his eyes roaming over the bruises on her skin. When he noticed the bite marks, anger so strong it made him weak in the knees surged through him.

Rachel put her hands over her stomach and chest. "I know I look awful," she started. Finn dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around her, laying his head against her stomach. "Finn?"

"Give me a minute," Finn told her softly. He closed his eyes tightly, praying for control. The blue and green bruises on Rachel's body destroyed what little bit of calm Finn had been able to maintain. He breathed deeply, in and out.

He didn't realize his body was shaking, but Rachel did. "Finn," she said again. "Look at me, please." Finn's head rose and he looked into her eyes. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head, unable to say anything over the lump in his throat. He looked over her torso, his fingers lightly touching her skin. His lips gently touched her stomach in an attempt to kiss the pain away. He kissed each bruise tenderly, careful to not put any pressure on the sensitive skin.

His lips continued moving up her body to her neck, then found hers. He tasted her tears, then realized that he was crying as well. His lips brushed against hers, his hands cupping her face. "I'm so sorry," he told her.

"I'll heal," she whispered against his lips.

"I thought that it would be over," he told her miserably. "I thought that with the new school policies, things would get better."

"They will," she assured him. "They'll have to." She held him for a moment, waiting for him to calm down.

Finn stood. "Do you need help getting a shirt on?"

Rachel nodded. "Help me get one on and then you can go tell dad about the appointment."

"Okay," he told her. She found the shirt she wanted to wear and handed it to him. Without thinking, Finn bent down to kiss her bare shoulder.

Rachel's breath caught in her throat. "Finn," she breathed, pulling his head down for another kiss. After she pulled away she looked into his eyes. "Thank you."

"For what?"

She looked down for a moment, then back up at him. "I was worried that after what happened I wouldn't want to…that I wouldn't feel…that I wouldn't be able to get…"

"Turned on?" he asked her with a small smirk.

Rachel slapped at his arm. "Yes," she told him.

"But you can?" he asked, running his hand through her hair and pulling her close for another kiss.

Rachel smiled into the kiss. "It's not a problem."

"Good." He helped her get her shirt on. "I'll go talk to Leroy and then we'll go see Artie. I need to talk to Figgins, too. Something has to change," he said determinedly.

Rachel shook her head as Finn walked out of the room. She'd always known that Finn was a leader. Now he knew it too.


	6. Chapter 6

Mike met Finn and Rachel at the hospital. His eyes widened when he saw Rachel's face, but he didn't say anything; instead, he pulled her close for a hug. "What happened?" Finn asked him.

"I'm not really sure," Mike told them, walking into the hospital. "His wheelchair was destroyed."

"Who did this?" Rachel asked him.

"No one knows," Mike told them. "Whoever it was, they put a bag over his head. A plastic bag."

Rachel gasped and Finn squeezed her hand. "What did they do to him?"

"He hasn't really talked about it," Mike said.

"Who is here?" Finn asked.

"The Club's here. His parents, too."

They found Artie's room and went in. "Hey guys, Finn and Rachel are here," Mike said.

"Rachel," Kurt said, coming over to hug her. Pulling back, he looked at her face. "We must discuss your cover up options," he told her.

Finn walked to the bed. "Hey Artie," he said.

"Hey," Artie said, trying to smile.

"How you doing?"

"I was already paralyzed. Not much more they could do to me, is there?"

Blaine cleared his throat. "Hey, let's give Finn and Rachel a moment with Artie, okay?"

The other glee clubbers left the room. Rachel leaned down and kissed Artie on the forehead. "How are you?" he asked her.

Rachel looked at Finn and smiled slightly. "Getting better," she told him. She sat down beside him on the bed. "What happened?"

Artie shrugged. "I was going down the hallway and someone grabbed my chair from behind and pulled me into a room."

"You didn't get a look at them at all?" Finn asked him.

"No," Artie said. "The room was dark and someone slipped a garbage bag over my head." He swallowed and looked towards the wall.

Rachel took his hand. "You were scared," she said. It wasn't a question.

Artie nodded. "It just happened so suddenly," he said, looking back at her. "I thought…I thought they were going to kill me."

Finn ran his hand through his hair. "Did they say anything?"

"One of them told the guy holding the bag to loosen it. I was about to pass out, and I think he was worried the guy was going to kill me." He frowned. "I didn't recognize his voice though." Artie looked away nervously.

"What is it, Artie?" Rachel asked him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, not looking at her.

"What are you hiding?" she asked him softly.

"I'm not hiding anything," he said.

"Look at me, Artie," she said quietly. Artie sighed and looked at her. "What happened?"

"He said for me to tell my buddy Hudson that this was on him," Artie finally admitted, looking down. "And that it's not over."

Finn hit the wall. "This is bullshit!" Finn shouted. Rachel and Artie flinched. "I'm sorry," he said, breathing hard. "I'll be back in a minute, okay?"

Rachel nodded at him. Finn left the room, careful to not slam the door behind him. He stalked out of the hospital, passing his friends but not stopping to talk to them. "Hey, man, wait up!" Puck called to him. Ignoring him, Finn continued to walk.

Puck caught up to him but didn't say anything else, just walked with him. When they reached the parking lot Finn pulled out the keys to Hiram's car and opened the door. He got into the drivers seat and stared out the windshield. Puck slid into the passenger seat. "We going somewhere?"

"This is fucking bullshit," Finn told him without looking at him. "These assholes know they can't hurt me so they hurt Artie to prove a point."

"What are you talking about?" Puck asked him. Finn told Puck what Artie had said. "Fuck, man, sounds like we need to crack some skulls."

"Yeah, but whose?" Finn asked frustrated. "This anti bullying policy is supposed to stop things like this from happening."

"It's also supposed to keep us from cracking skulls," Puck pointed out.

"I'm not doing anything at school," Finn told him.

"Not the point, dude," Puck told him. "I thought the reason for this thing was to stop violence."

"Does it seem to be working?" Finn asked, staring at his friend.

Puck shrugged. "Hey, I'm with you. Artie's my friend too."

"I don't know what we're going to do, but we can't do _anything _until we figure out who it is."

"I don't think Karofsky is a part of it," Puck told his friend.

Finn looked at him. "Why do you say that?"

"He came up to me today, told me to tell you that he wasn't cool with what happened to Rach and Santana."

Finn thought about it for a moment. "Do you think he knows who did this to Artie?"

Puck shrugged. "We can ask."

Finn hit the steering wheel. "I hate this," he told Puck.

"Rachel seems to be doing better," Puck told him after a moment.

Finn sat back in his seat and sighed. "She does," he agreed. "She has really bad nightmares, though. She's strong, but no one can go through something like that without a few scars."

"How've you been sleeping?" Puck asked him, looking out the windshield.

"Fuck, man, I'm a wreck," Finn admitted. "I can't sleep without dreaming about what happened."

"Me either," Puck told him. "I woke my mom up last night; she said I was thrashing around and yelling."

"I'm trying to be strong for Rachel, but it's not going so well," Finn told him.

"Dude, whatever you're doing is working," Puck assured him. "They're setting up free counseling services at the school. I think I might go."

"Really?" Finn asked him.

"What? Does that make me a pussy?"

Finn shook his head. "No, it's just cool that the school's doing that."

"You're still pissed at Figgins, right?"

"Hell yes, I'm pissed at Figgins. This shit has been going on for years and he hasn't done anything about it," Finn said.

"They're doing something now."

Finn snorted. "And here we are, at the hospital, visiting a friend who was attacked."

"These things take time."

"Who else is going to get hurt while we're waiting?" Finn asked.

The boys sat in silence for a few minutes. "I think I'm ready to go back in," Finn told him.

Puck nodded. "Let's go then."

Quinn met them at the door. "What's going on?" she asked them.

"Will you get the others and have everyone meet us in Artie's room?" Finn asked her.

Quinn nodded. "Sure," she told him.

"Hey Quinn," Puck said, stopping her. "Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" she asked.

"Three of your friends have been attacked this week. It's a valid question," Puck told her.

Quinn sighed. "I'm having a little trouble getting some of this stuff out of my head," she admitted finally.

"Puck said they're setting up counseling at the school," Finn told her.

"My mom has already set something up," Quinn told them.

"Good," Puck said, nodding to her.

"I'll get everyone," she said, walking away.

"That girl's going to explode at any moment," Puck told Finn, walking down the hall with him.

"Why do you say that?" Finn asked.

"Just look at all the things she's been through in the past year," Puck said.

Finn frowned. "You think I should talk to her?"

"Nah, man, you've got Rachel to worry about. I'll talk to her later."

Finn nodded. "Thanks, man." Puck laughed lowly. "What?"

"You've taken this captain thing to heart."

Finn thought about Puck's words, pausing when they reached Artie's door. "I guess I have," he said. "I feel like the Glee Club is my responsibility."

"Let me know if you need help," Puck told him seriously. "I've got your back."

Finn smiled at him. "Thanks, man."

Rachel smiled at him when he walked into the room. "Hey," she said.

"Hey," he told her, smiling back. He leaned over and kissed her softly as their friends came into the room.

"What's going on?" Brittany asked them.

Finn told the group what Artie's attacker had said to him. "Does this mean we're all in danger?" Tina asked.

Finn looked at Puck, who nodded. "I think so," he told her.

"I'd like for one of them to try," Lauren said.

"That's the problem," Rachel said quietly. "It's not just one of them."

Artie nodded. "I was attacked by at least three guys."

"So what do we do?" Quinn asked.

"Since we don't know for sure who's doing this, we can't stop them," Finn said. "The best thing we can do right now is be as safe as possible. Always walk with two or more other people, keep in touch with each other, that sort of thing."

"This feels like we're at war," Mercedes said sadly.

"That's what it is," Puck told her. "And they have the advantage."

"We're going to have to work together to figure out who's behind the attack," Finn told them. "If we can figure out who it is, Figgins can take care of them."

"I've always felt fear when I walked down the hallways at McKinley," Kurt said. "This is somehow so much worse."

"It's because we know now that there's nothing they won't do," Santana said from behind him. "They really are animals."

"I'm going to talk to Mr. Schue tomorrow, let him know what's going on. He can talk to Figgins." Finn looked at Rachel. "I wish you'd change your mind about going back to school, Rach. At least wait until next week."

Rachel shook her head. "I need to go back now Finn, or I may never be able to."

"I'm with Finn, Rachel," Sam said. "I just don't think it's a good idea. If they're trying to hurt Finn, the best way is through you."

Rachel sighed. "We'll talk about it later, Finn, okay?"

"Should we all meet together in the morning?" Mike asked.

Finn nodded. "That's a good idea. Does anyone have a problem with this plan?" Everyone shook their heads. "I'm going to be honest," he told them. "If some of you decided not to come to school, that would be understandable."

"We really need to be there," Tina said. "We'll have a better change of finding out who they are if we're all working on it."

Mercedes nodded. "I'm not letting anyone run me out of my school."

"We'll meet in the parking lot in the morning, then," Puck said. "If you can, ride with someone."

"Artie, man, when do you get to leave?" Finn asked him.

"They're just keeping me as a precaution," Artie said. "I'll be back in school on Friday."

Finn nodded. "We should meet again Thursday night to decide what the plan is for Friday morning." Everyone agreed.

"We can do this," Puck said, looking at Finn.

"We have to," Finn told his friend.


	7. Chapter 7

"I don't want to stay home," Rachel told him. Finn opened his mouth to say something and she held up her hand. "Listen to me, Finn, okay?" He closed his mouth and nodded. "I know how upset and worried you are," she told him. "I'm not going to fight you on this," she said softly. "I don't want to add one more thing to your list of things to fret about."

Finn smiled a bit at her words. Who said "fret?" "Thank you, baby," he told her, bringing her hand up to kiss it. He pulled into her driveway.

"Are you staying tonight?" Rachel asked him.

"Do you think your dads would care?"

Rachel shook her head. "No."

Finn smiled at her. "Then I'll stay. I'll have Kurt come get me in the morning for school. He can bring me some clothes." Finn frowned. "Maybe I should have Blaine pick out my clothes…"

Rachel laughed. "I'd ask Burt, if I were you," she told him, getting out of the car slowly.

"Wait, Rach," Finn told her, running around the car to stand in front of her. "I'll help you."

"I'm okay," Rachel said, grimacing a little.

"Of course you are," Finn told her. "But would it kill you to let me help you?"

"Maybe," she mumbled.

They were walking to the front door when a loud wave of thunder rolled around them. Startled, Rachel shrieked and buried her face in Finn's shirt. Finn wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay, babe," he told her. "It's just thunder."

Breathing hard and clutching his shirt, Rachel just nodded. "I know," she said, her voice muffled by his clothes.

Finn stood in the pathway holding her, nodding to Hiram when he opened the door. "We should go in the house," he told her softly. "Your dads are waiting."

Rachel slowly pulled away from Finn, taking his hand and holding it tightly. "Hi Daddy," she said when she saw Hiram.

"Hello sweetheart," Hiram said, holding the door open for them. He mouthed "Thank you" to Finn as they passed him. Finn nodded.

"Daddy, is it okay for Finn to stay the night again?" Rachel asked him.

"Is it okay with your mom?" Hiram asked the boy.

"I need to call her, but I'm sure she won't mind," Finn told him.

Hiram nodded. "If it's okay with her, it's fine with us," Hiram said. "Leroy is still at the office but he'll be home soon."

Rachel yawned widely, then covered her mouth, embarrassed. "Excuse me," she said. "I don't understand why I've been so tired."

"Anytime you're dealing with such a stressful situation, it's going to take a toll on your body," Hiram told the kids. He looked at Rachel. "I really wish you would reconsider going back to school tomorrow," he told her.

"I'm not," Rachel told him.

Finn nodded. "There's a problem at school," Finn told him. He explained what Artie had said to Hiram as they entered the kitchen. Hiram set out some of Rachel's banana bread and poured them some milk as he listened.

"Can't the police do anything?" Hiram asked, upset.

Finn shook his head, chewing the banana bread. "No one knows who it was, Daddy," Rachel said, answering for him.

"This is outrageous," Hiram told them.

Finn sighed. "I wish everyone would stay home."

Rachel shook her head. "That's not our way, Finn, and you know it." She yawned again. "I'm going to go hop in the shower," she told them.

"Do you need any help getting your shirt off?" Finn asked her. Realizing what he'd said in front of Hiram, he ducked his head and looked up at the man sheepishly.

"No, I think I can handle it," Rachel said, leaving the room. She didn't notice Finn's embarrassment. "I'll call if I need help."

Hiram watched Finn after Rachel left the room. The boy's entire face was beet red. "I, uh, I didn't mean that I would, uh…" Finn said, then opened and closed his mouth for a moment.

"You look like a fish, son," Hiram told him. He sat on a stool at the bar and looked at Finn.

"I love your daughter, sir," Finn told him. "I would never take advantage of her in any way."

Hiram nodded. "I know that," he told the boy. "You're a good kid, Finn, and I know that my Rachel adores you." He wrapped the banana bread up. "I may be old, but I remember what it feels like to be in love for the first time." He stood up and put the bread on the counter. "You should call your mom now and make sure it's okay for you to stay."

Finn nodded, almost falling out of his chair in an effort to stand up. "I will, sir. Thank you."

Hiram chuckled. "You can cool it on the "sir" stuff too," he told the boy. "And stop looking at me like I'm going to come to Rachel's room and murder you in your sleep."

Finn smiled slightly. "Good night, sir. I mean, Hiram. Sir." He sighed. "I'm going to leave the room now." Hiram nodded to him, chuckling.

Finn dialed his mom's cell as he walked up the stairs. "Hey," she said.

"Hey mom," he told her. "What're you up to?"

"Thinking about you," Carol told him. "Always."

Finn smiled. "I'm going to stay the night here again if that's okay with you."

"Do Rachel's dads care?"

"Nah, Hiram said it was fine."

"That's okay then. What about your truck and clothes?"

"I'll text Kurt and see if he and Blaine can run them over in the morning. We're all meeting together in the morning anyway."

"You may want Blaine to pick out your clothes," Carol whispered into the phone.

Finn laughed. "Do you think Burt could grab me some?"

"I'm sure he could do that," Carol told him. "Kurt told us about what's going on," she told him. "I'm so worried about you."

"It's going to be okay, Mom," he told her, walking into Rachel's room and sitting on her bed. "I'm going to take care of it."

Carol was silent for a moment. "I'm supposed to take care of you," she finally said. "I don't fee like I'm doing my job."

"This isn't a normal situation," Finn told her. "And you've always taken care of me. I love you."

"I love you too baby," she told him. "I'll have Burt go down and get your clothes now. I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"Right."

"Bye, baby," Carol said.

"Bye mama," Finn told her, closing the phone.

"I love to hear you call her mama," Rachel said, smiling from the doorway. "It's cute."

Finn smiled crookedly at her. "You're wearing my shirt," he said.

Rachel looked down. "It smelled like you," she said simply.

"I think your dad might try to murder me in my sleep," Finn told her, pulling her closer so that she was standing between his legs.

"Why would you say that?" she said.

Finn shrugged. "Just a feeling I have."

Rachel laughed, leaning into him and kissing him. "You'll be okay." She sat on his lap and sighed. "I don't want to go to sleep."

"Why?" he said, rubbing her back.

"I don't want to sleep because if I sleep I dream and if I dream it'll be about him."

Finn frowned. "I wish I could help," he told her. "But I'll be here if you need me."

Rachel put her head on his shoulder. "That helps."

They sat together for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. "I don't want you to go tomorrow," Rachel said. She raised her head and looked into his eyes. "It scares me."

Finn smiled softly at her. "I've got to go, Rach," he told her.

"I know," she said. "I just don't want you to."

"We'll figure out who it is and then the school will be safe again."

"Are you going to see one of the counselors they'll have there?"

Finn nodded thoughtfully. "I think that maybe I should."

"Can't hurt, right?"

"Right." He kissed her lightly on the lips. "I need to get a shower," he told her.

Rachel stood up. "I'm going to read a little, I guess."

"I'll be back in a few minutes," he told her.

"'Kay." She watched him gather his things together and leave the room. Sighing, she sat on the bed and opened her book. The house seemed too quiet and she couldn't concentrate. She put the book down after a few minutes and closed her eyes. She worried about her friends. She didn't want any of them to go to school tomorrow.

A loud noise startled her. She sat straight up in the bed, noticing that the room was dark. "Finn?" she called, wondering if the storm had knocked the electricity out. She really didn't want to get out of the bed. Chills covered her body and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Something was wrong.

"Finn?' she said, quieter this time. Because of the storm, the night was pitch black; there was no moonlight shining in her window. She sighed, getting out of the bed. "Crap," she said, almost tripping over her shoes.

Feeling her way to the door, she stood in the doorway for a moment, trying to get her bearings. "Daddy?" she called. Nothing but silence answered her.

She didn't like this. Keeping her hand on the wall, she walked towards the bathroom. The door was open; Finn wasn't in there. She heard a noise downstairs and rolled her eyes. Finn was probably trying to get some more banana bread.

She walked carefully down the steps, wishing the lights would come back on. Getting into the kitchen, she was able to see Finn bent over at the fridge because of the streetlight shining in the window. "Hey, why didn't you answer me?" she asked, walking to him.

He turned around and she gasped. It wasn't Finn. It was Josh. "I've been looking for a Berry," he told her, smiling. "Know where I could find one?"

Rachel shook her head in disbelief, backing away from him. She bumped into someone. Turning around, she saw Zeke. Moving away from both of them, she screamed, "Get out of my house! Finn! Daddy!"

"We're just here to have a little fun," Josh told her.

Rachel had backed into the wall. They started towards her. "Get away from me!" she screamed at them. She looked around for something to defend herself with but could find nothing. "Get away!"

Josh reached her, pushing her into the wall. "Did you miss me?" he asked her. He looked over at Zeke. "I bet she missed me."

Rachel began crying. "Finn!" she screamed.

"That's not my name," Josh told her, grabbing her chin and squeezing it. "Say my name."

Rachel closed her eyes and shook her head. Josh pushed his body into hers. "Say my name," he growled.

"Finn," Rachel sobbed weakly.

"Rachel," Finn said, shaking her. "Rachel, baby, wake up." Rachel continued to cry in her sleep. "Rachel!"

Slowly opening her eyes, Rachel looked up into his face. "Finn?"

Finn gathered her in his arms. "It's okay, Rachel, I've got you," he told her. Rachel cried in his arms, letting him rock her. "It was just a dream."

"I was so scared," she told him.

"Me too," he told her. When he'd gotten out of the bathroom he'd heard her whimpering. Coming into the room, he realized she'd fallen asleep and was having a bad dream. She kept calling for him, but he couldn't seem to wake her up.

"It was Josh and Zeke," she told him. "They were here, in the house. It was so dark…"

"It's okay, baby," he told her.

Leroy came into the room. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Bad dream," Finn told him.

Rachel stood up and ran to her dad, hugging him. "I just got home," Leroy told them. He looked down at Rachel. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know," she told him honestly. "I thought I was doing okay…"

Leroy nodded. "Do you think you should take one of the sleeping pills your doctor gave you?"

Rachel bit her lip and looked at Finn. "You should take one, Rach," he told her. "It will help you."

Rachel shook her head. "I don't think so," she said finally. She didn't want to admit it out loud, but she was terrified of getting trapped in a dream.

Leroy shook her head. "Alright then. You kids try to get some sleep. And Finn, no funny business." Finn, shocked, opened his mouth to say something and Leroy winked at him.

Rachel giggled as her dad left the room. "He's just playing with you," she told him.

"Oh," Finn said. He watched Rachel walk back towards the bed. "Are you okay?"

She nodded as she lay back down. "I think so."

Finn pulled the cover up over her and settled into the bed. Propping himself up on his hand, he looked at her. "I could get used to staying with you," he told her softly.

Rachel brought her hand up to caress his cheek. "I could get used to you being here," she admitted.

Finn lowered his head, kissing her sweetly. "I love you," he said, looking into her eyes.

Rachel smiled. "I love you, too."

Finn put his arm under her neck, his other arm reaching for the light to turn it off. "No more bad dreams, okay?"

"Okay," Rachel said as the light clicked off. Snuggling into Finn, she wasn't even scared anymore.


	8. Chapter 8

Rachel left her counseling appointment feeling a little better. She couldn't stop worrying about Finn and her other friends, but she felt like the doctor had been able to help her in regards to her nightmares.

Instead of going home, Rachel called her dads and told them that she was going to swing by Artie's. They told her to be careful and she promised them that she would. Pulling into Artie's driveway, Rachel sent Finn a text letting him know what she was doing.

"Hello," Artie's mother said when she opened the door. "You're Rachel. Artie's told me so much about you."

"I bet he has," Rachel said, laughing a little. It was no secret that Artie and Rachel hadn't always gotten along very well.

"He's in his room," Mrs. Abrams told her. "He hasn't said much today."

Rachel walked to his bedroom door and knocked. "Artie?" she said. She opened the door and found him sitting in his chair, staring out the window. "Hey," she said quietly.

"Rachel? What are you doing here?"

Rachel walked into the room and sat on his bed. "I just left my counseling appointment and thought I'd stop by."

"Your dads sent you to a counselor?"

Rachel nodded. "How are you?"

Artie shrugged. "I'm fine," he told her.

"That's what I kept saying, too," she told him. "But I really wasn't."

"Yeah, well, I am."

"Okay," Rachel said. "But if you need to talk, you can talk to me."

Artie kept staring out the window, not speaking. "I guess I'll just let myself out then," Rachel said, getting up and walking towards the door.

"I thought I was going to die," Artie said, not looking at her. "And for a moment…I didn't care."

"Oh, Artie," Rachel said, walking back towards him. "You shouldn't think like that."

"I know," he told her. "I know that I'm lucky to be alive. I know that I really do have a good life."

"But sometimes it's not enough?"

Artie shook his head, rubbing his eyes. "I don't know why I'm so unhappy," he admitted, his voice wobbling.

Rachel hugged him. "I think everyone feels that way sometimes," she told him. "I know I have."

"Really?" he said, looking at her.

Rachel shrugged. "It's not easy being Rachel Berry sometimes," she told him.

"It's not easy being around Rachel Berry sometimes," Artie told her. Rachel pulled back, hurt. Artie put his hand on her. "No, not like that." He sighed. "You're so good at everything you do and no matter what happens, you're smiling about it. I can't do that."

Rachel shook her head. "It's not easy," she told him. "I have problems, just like everyone else. I just hide them better."

"I think I might try to see a doctor too," he told her. "This can't be healthy."

"You should," Rachel told him. "It really helped me."

"Are you going back?"

"I didn't think I would when the session started, but by the end I was making another appointment."

Artie nodded. "I'm going back to school tomorrow," he told her. "I'm not going to let them scare me."

"I want to go back tomorrow, too," Rachel said. "But I _am _scared." She looked down. "I jump at loud noises and get nervous around large men. I have the worst dreams…and I can hear them talking in my head."

Artie held her hand. "After I got over my initial apathy, I was terrified," he admitted. "I couldn't breathe, and there wasn't a lot I could do about it. When they tossed me out of my chair, I could hear them throwing it against the wall, but I was too afraid to move. So I just laid there and prayed that they'd leave me alone."

Rachel nodded. "I prayed too," she told him. "And it seems like both of our prayers were answered."

"I hadn't thought about it like that," he told her.

"I guess I hadn't either," Rachel said. She smiled at him. "But I feel better now that I do."

"Me too," Artie told her.

"I'm hoping Finn has figured out who's behind your attack."

"Me too," Artie said. "I'd like to know who to sic Lauren on."

Rachel laughed. "She could take them."

Artie nodded in agreement. "Are you going to the "group meeting" tonight?" he asked her.

"Yeah," Rachel told him. "I'll be there." She got up and squeezed his shoulder. "I'll see you then."

"Thanks for coming by," he told her, smiling a little. "I needed that."

"Me too," Rachel told him, smiling back. "I'll see you tonight."

She left him with a smile but her heart was heavy. She'd been so caught up in her own feelings lately that she hadn't been paying much attention to anyone else's. Finn was stepping up as captain of the Glee Club…maybe it was time she stepped up too.

When she got back into her car she saw that Finn had texted her. She called him, wanting to hear his voice. "Hey baby," he said, answering.

Warmth spread through her body at that. "Hey yourself," she said, smiling. "How did today go?"

"Pretty well. No one was hurt. Maybe it's over."

"Good, because I want to go back to school tomorrow."

"Rachel," he sighed. "I'm at my house now. I'm going to grab something to eat and I'll be over and we can talk about it, okay?"

"Okay," she told him.

"How's Artie?"

Rachel was silent for a moment. "I think he's going to be okay," she said finally. She knew that she could tell Finn anything, but these were Artie's feelings, not hers.

"Good. Is he coming to the meeting tonight?" he asked, chewing on something.

"Finn Hudson, chew with your mouth closed!" Rachel said, laughing. "And yeah, he's coming."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "I'll be over in a few, okay?"

"Okay," she told him. "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, hanging up.

Rachel smiled as she stopped at a stop sign. She really couldn't wait to see him. A dark shadow fell over her as someone leaned against her car window. She screamed. The man backed away, holding his hands up. Heart pounding in her chest, Rachel stared at the town's one and only homeless man. "I am so sorry," she said to him.

"Forget it lady," the man said, walking off and shaking his head.

"Get a grip, Rachel," she said to herself, turning on the radio.

Finn pulled into her driveway right after her. He walked up the driveway and grabbed her, pulling her close for a kiss. Pulling away, he stared smiled at her.

"Miss me?" he asked huskily.

Rachel smiled at him. "Maybe a little," she said.

Finn's thumb caressed her cheek gently, mindful of her bruises. "You look beautiful today," he told her.

"You don't have to say that," Rachel told him. "I know how I look."

Finn bent his head, his lips lightly brushing hers. When she wrapped her arms around his neck he deepened the kiss. Finally, breathing hard, he pulled back. "Beautiful," he told her again.

"What?" Rachel asked, dazed.

Finn smiled crookedly. "You didn't eat all of the banana bread did you?"

Rachel rolled her eyes and led him into the house. "You just ate!" she playfully chided him.

Finn smiled at her. "I can always eat again," he told her, following her into the kitchen. Rachel went to the cabinet but Finn stopped her with a hand on her arm, pulling her to a seat. After she'd sat down, he fixed himself a piece of banana bread. "Do you want a piece?" he asked her.

Rachel shook her head. "What happened at school today?"

Finn shrugged. "Nothing, really. We met this morning and went in together. I made an appointment with one of the counselors there." He took a bite of the bread and groaned. "This is so good," he told her. "Anyway, we stayed in groups throughout the day and no one messed with us."

Rachel smiled. "Maybe it's over, then," she told him.

"Hopefully." He looked at her. "I miss making out with you by your locker."

Rachel blushed and looked down. "Is that all you miss?" she asked him.

"No, babe," he told her, smiling. "I miss your voice and the way your hand fits in mine when we're walking down the hall. I miss the way you smile up at me, like I'm the only person around in a hallway full of people. I miss that irritated noise you make in the back of your throat when you see Jewfro."

Rachel shook her head and grinned. "His name is Jacob," she said, getting up and walking over to him. Sitting on his lap, she put her head on his shoulder. "And I missed you, too."

"I don't want you to come back tomorrow," he told her. "It scares me."

"I've been thinking about it and even if something had happened today, I would have still wanted to go back."

"Why?" he asked, playing with her hair.

Rachel shrugged. "When I was talking to the doctor I realized that I'm going to be scared and I'm going to have bad dreams…but that I can't let this alter the person I want to be." She looked up at him. "And I want to be strong. Not just for me, but for my dads and the club…and for you."

Finn kissed her forehead. "You are strong for me, Rach," he told her. "I can't believe how great you're doing. I was so worried…" he broke off and shook his head. "You amaze me."

"If you could record that for me, that would be awesome," she told him, winking.

Finn nodded. "I'll get on it." He rubbed her back. "Guess what I brought you?"

"You brought me something?" she asked, excited.

Finn laughed. "Yup."

"What is it?"

"Your homework."

Rachel stared at him for a moment, her mouth open. "Finn!" she said finally, swatting him. "That wasn't nice at all!"

He kept laughed. "Sorry babe," he told her.

"Oh well," she said, sighing. "I guess I do need to do it."

"Let me get my bag," he told her, standing up after she moved off of his lap. He ran out to his truck, then came back in. "It's in there," he told her, handing her the backpack and putting the bread up.

Mumbling, Rachel opened the bag, finding a bunch of wildflowers on top of her books. "Are these for me?" she asked him, pulling them out. It was a bunch of random flowers that she saw on the side of the road every day. They were beautiful.

"How did those get in there?" Finn asked, shaking his head. Rachel just looked at him, smiling. "Do you like them?" She nodded, her eyes welling up with tears. "I saw them on the side of the road and thought of you."

"They're perfect," she told him.

"That's why they reminded me of you," he told her, smiling and lowering his head slowly to hers. Their lips met and Rachel forgot about every single problem she'd ever had in her life. The only thing in the world was Finn and his soft lips and his strong arms. "Why are you crying?" he asked, pulling back.

Rachel put her arms around his waist and held him tight, crying into his shirt. "I don't know," she told him.

"Are you okay?" Rachel nodded. "Was it something I did?" She shook her head. Giving up, Finn held her, rubbing her back. "I love you," he told her.

Rachel felt like a crazy person and she couldn't seem to stop crying. Finn was just so wonderful…and was that a reason to cry? No. Could she help it? Nope. Finally the flow of tears stemmed and she pulled away from Finn, stretching up to kiss him. "Thank you," she whispered against his lips, "for being everything you are." Finn nodded, looking down at her. "Want to help me with my homework?"

Finn smiled. "Sure," he told her, taking her offered hand and following her into the living room. He wasn't sure what had caused her to cry, but he knew love when he saw it shining in her eyes. He'd take it.


	9. Chapter 9

Rachel heard the phone ring in the other room and looked up from the World Civ chapter she was reading. She and Finn were sitting on the couch in the living room, her legs in his lap. He absently ran his thumbs around the inside of her knee, something that drove her crazy. She knew that she was still torn up about the attack, but she'd been thinking about planning her own attack on him since he'd started making those little circles against her skin. Did he really not realize what he was doing to her? And how cute was he, trying to figure out his Spanish homework?

Finn's hand moved up her leg a little and her gaze quickly moved to his face. He was smiling but he didn't take his eyes off of his book. Rachel opened her mouth to say something when Hiram rushed into the room. Finn's immediately moved his hand and Rachel sat up straight. "What's wrong, daddy?"

Hiram looked torn. "Honey…" he said as the doorbell rang.

"I've got it!" Leroy yelled.

Rachel and Finn stood up. "Daddy, what's going on?"

Puck ran into the room. "Did you guys hear?"

"What's going on?" Finn demanded.

"Jewfro's missing," Puck said. "His parents called Mom a few minutes ago. They're calling everyone they know to see if he's with them. He's not."

Hiram nodded. "That's who was on the phone," he told Rachel and Finn.

Rachel felt dizzy. Finn reached out and steadied her, lowering her to the couch. "Did they get him?" Finn asked Puck. "Do you think they did something to him?"

"Dude, Jewfro-" Hiram glared at him, "_Jacob_ doesn't really have anywhere to be, you know?"

"We have to look for him," Finn said. "What would they have done with him?"

"I'll call everyone," Rachel said. "They can help too." She jumped up and ran up the stairs for her phone.

Leroy came into the room. "Hiram said that his parents are organizing a search party."

Hiram nodded. "We can all go…" he looked towards the steps. "I don't want to leave Rachel alone, though."

"I'm not staying here," Rachel told him, walking down the steps and texting. "I'm going too."

"Rachel," Puck, Hiram and Leroy all said at the same time.

Rachel looked up at Finn. He nodded to her. "If Rachel wants to come, then she can come," he told the other three men. "I'll protect her."

Rachel smiled at him. "I know you will."

Puck sighed. "I'll help keep an eye on her," he said.

"What are we doing?" she said.

"They're starting a search party at the school," Leroy told her. "Tell your friends to meet us there."

Rachel nodded and sent out the message. When she'd finished, she looked up. "Are we going or what?"

"Yes ma'am," Hiram said, turning around to grab his stuff.

"Puck, you can ride with us," Finn told him. Puck nodded. Rachel leaned over to grab her bottle of water, wincing a little as she stretched her arm out. Finn walked to her, taking her face in his hands.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked, searching her face for any signs of doubt.

Rachel nodded. "I'm sure." She rose on her toes and kissed him. "Thank you for sticking up for me."

"I've got you, babe," he told her. Taking her hand, he led her out of the room to where Puck and her dads were waiting. "We're ready."

"We'll meet you kids there," Leroy told them. He kissed Rachel's forehead.

After they'd gotten into Finn's truck, Puck leaned his head against the back of the seat. "Are you okay Noah?" Rachel asked him.

"Not really," he told her. "I thought I was going to die when they locked me in that port-a-potty last year and I'm a pretty strong dude. I just hope it's something like that, though, you know?"

Rachel nodded. "You hope that he's irritated, not hurt."

"Pretty much," he told her.

Finn put his hand on Rachel's leg. "We'll find him," he told her, not taking his eyes off the road.

Rachel covered his hand with hers. "I know," she said, but she was worried. These guys had obviously gone over the edge. Who knew what they were capable of?

When they got to the school they were surprised to find so many people gathered there. Kurt and Blaine quickly walked toward the truck. "Rachel," Kurt said, pulling her in for a hug. "Why did you come?"

"I needed to," she told him.

Blaine smiled at her. "Hey beautiful," he said. Rachel hugged him.

"What's the plan?" Finn asked them.

"From what we can tell, they're going to search the whole town. They're asking students to search the school grounds because we know it better," Kurt told him.

"That makes sense," Finn said. "Figgins here?"

Blaine nodded. "He's over there," he said, nodding towards a large group of people, "with Mr. Schue and the other teachers."

"Let's go," Finn told them. They walked together, surrounding Rachel without realizing it. When they got to the crowd, the principal was dividing them into groups. "Hey, Figgins!" Finn called. Everyone around them quietened down. "Who's doing this?"

"Mr. Hudson, we're unsure of what's happened to Jacob. Until we know for sure, there's no point in speculating."

"School's safe now, right?" Finn said.

"Let's get into our groups now," Mr. Schue stepped up and said. "We need to find Jacob."

"Calm down, baby," Rachel told him, squeezing his hand comfortingly.

"Sorry," Finn told her, sighing.

The rest of the Glee Club members (including Artie) joined them. "I guess we divide up and search?" Mercedes said.

Finn nodded. "I think that we should go in large groups, though." Puck nodded in agreement. "Rachel, Puck, Artie, Kurt and Blaine will go with me. Sam you, Mike, Tina, Mercedes, Santana, Quinn, Brittany and Lauren can go together. Does that sound okay with everyone?" They nodded. "Let's find him," Finn said. "And keep in mind that we're all targets."

"Great," Tina mumbled, hugging Rachel. "Be careful," she told her friend.

"I will," Rachel said. She looked at Santana and nodded. The other girl smiled slightly in response.

Finn and Puck decided to start around the football field, for obvious reasons. Rachel felt a bit odd being back at school, and wondered if anyone would be upset if she didn't want to go inside the school. She figured they would understand.

They searched for hours, everyone growing tired and frustrated. "I hope someone's having better luck than us," Blaine said.

"Maybe someone found him and they just forgot to call and tell us?" Kurt said tiredly.

Rachel sat down on one of the bleacher seats. "Can we sit for a minute?" she asked. She hated to hold them back, but she was literally exhausted.

Finn nodded, sitting beside her. "Sorry," he said, looking out over the field. "I should have thought about how tiring this would be for you."

"Some of us don't have football practice every day," she said with a smile, then looked at her group. "Well, I guess it's just me that doesn't have football practice every day." Both Blaine and Kurt were on the football team now, too.

Puck shook his head. "I really felt like we'd find him around here."

Finn nodded in agreement. "I did too."

The group sat in silence for a while. "Who could be doing this?" Artie finally asked. "I think we're all in agreement that it's some of the jocks, right?" Everyone nodded. "As Rachel pointed out, we're pretty much all jocks. Why do they hate us?"

"Because we're different," Blaine told him. "And they don't like anything that's different. It scares them."

"Why Jacob, though?" Rachel wondered out loud. "I thought it was us they were after?"

"Jacob's different too," Kurt told her. "Plus, he _was _part of the Glee Club for a brief moment."

Rachel put her head over on Finn's shoulder. "I just hope he's not hurt," she said lowly. "I don't want anyone else to be hurt."

Finn wrapped his arm around her, kissing her head. "Me too."

"My brain doesn't seem to be working anymore," Puck said, sitting down beside them. "We've looked everywhere I can think of."

"The entire school was searched, right? The inside of it?" Blaine asked.

"I'm assuming so," Finn told him.

"Where would a bunch of jocks put him," Rachel wondered out loud.

Puck and Finn looked at each other and then quickly looked up at the scoreboard. Finn jumped up. Jacob was hanging from the scoreboard. "Call Mr. Schue!" Finn yelled at Kurt, running toward the scoreboard. The rest of the group followed him and Puck.

When they reached the scoreboard, Rachel turned around and put her head in Blaine's chest, sobbing. Kurt was telling Mr. Schue what they'd found and to bring an ambulance. Jacob had been hung from the top of the scoreboard. Because he was covered in black, he'd blended in with the board. "Shhh," Blaine said, rubbing her back.

Finn and Puck climbed the sides of the scoreboard, each walking along the front of it carefully until they reached the boy in the middle. "He's alive!" Finn called down. The rope holding him was around his neck, but it was also under his arms.

Such a wave of relief washed over Rachel that her legs failed to hold her up. Blaine caught her, lowering her gently to the ground. Artie rolled to her side, taking her hand.

"Barely, dude," Puck told Finn lowly. "His breathing is pretty shallow. We need to get him down from here ASAP."

Finn nodded. "How are we going to get him down?" he asked Puck.

"Can you lower him to us?" Blaine called up to him.

Puck shrugged. "We can try." He looked down. "I don't want to fall off of this thing, Finn."

Finn nodded. "Jacob?" he said to the boy. "He's out. Let's not drop him."

Puck pulled his pocket knife out of his pants and started cutting the rope from the top of the score board. Finn held on to the board with one hand, the other arm around Jacob. When all of the ropes were cut, the weight of the other boy knocked him off balance. "Finn!" Rachel screamed.

Finn righted himself, not looking down. "Fuck man, I almost lost it," he told Puck.

"Lower him down with the ropes," Kurt told them.

"Yeah, yeah," Puck said, resting his forehead on the scoreboard. He took a deep breath and looked at Finn. "Can we do this?"

"Yeah," Finn told him. Each boy holding one of the ropes, they slowly lowered Jacob down.

Blaine and Kurt stood under them with their arms up to grab the boy. Finn and Puck were both shaking as they worked. "Fuck!" Puck yelled, the rope slipping out of his hand. He fell forward, catching the edge of the scoreboard with one hand. The added weight surprised Finn and he almost dropped Jacob, grabbing onto the scoreboard to keep from falling.

"Puck!" Finn yelled.

"Shit shit shit," Puck said, grabbing the ledge with his other hand. He tried to pull himself up but the rope had cut his hand open as it slid out of it and he couldn't use it. "I'm going to fall," he told Finn, fear in his eyes as he looked at his friend.

"No," Finn told him. "Just hang on." Finn kept lowering Jacob, every muscle in his body straining.

"Drop him, Finn," Kurt told his brother. "We can catch him."

"Are you sure?" Finn demanded. "He's in bad shape."

"We can catch him," Kurt repeated. "Drop him."

Finn let go of the rope, praying that Kurt was telling the truth. He walked slowly over to where Puck was hanging. "Grab my hand," he told his friend.

"It's cut open," Puck told him.

"I don't give a shit," Finn told him, leaning down unsteadily. "Grab my hand."

Puck swung his hand up, almost touching Finn's outstretched hand. Missing it, his body swung back downward. "Fuck," he yelled.

"Grab his hand Noah!" Rachel screamed tearfully. Blaine and Kurt had removed the duct tape from Jacob's mouth and were watching their two friends fearfully.

Puck took a deep breath, looking up at Finn. Finn nodded. Puck swung up again, this time reaching his friend. He hissed as Finn clamped on to his injured hand, but helped pull himself up. When he was again standing on the small ledge he leaned against the scoreboard. "Thanks, bro," he said to Finn, breathing hard.

"Any time," Finn told him. After they'd regained their composure, they made their way down the sides of the scoreboard. Reaching the bottom, they realized that emergency personnel had reached Jacob.

Kurt grabbed Finn in a hug as soon as he touched the ground. Letting him go, he walked over to Puck, doing the same. Rachel stood in front of him, tears streaming down her face. "Finn," she said hoarsely.

Finn moved towards her, grabbing her up in his arms and burying his face in her hair. "I love you," he told her. Rachel shook her head, holding him tightly.

"Finn, Puck, are you guys okay?" Mr. Schue asked them, running up. "We saw what happened but we were too far away to help."

"I'm fine," Puck told the group.

Santana ran towards him, hugging him tightly. "Don't you ever do anything stupid like that again," she told him forcefully.

Puck hugged her back, realizing that both of their bodies were shaking. "I won't," he said, closing his eyes.

Jacob was being loaded into the back of an ambulance that had made its way onto the field. "Is he going to be okay?" Finn asked one of the attendants.

"Hopefully," the guy told him.

"Mr. Hudson," a police officer said, walking towards Finn and holding a paper out. "Did you see this? It was taped to the victim's chest."

Finn flinched when the man said "victim." "What is it?" he reached for the paper but the man shook his head.

"Please don't touch it," he told Finn. "Just read it."

US: 4 HUDSON: 0

WANNA KEEP PLAYING?

"Son of a bitch," Finn said, reading it. "Who's doing this?" he asked the cop.

"We don't know, son," the man told him. "But we're going to find out."

"School will be cancelled until Monday," Figgins was saying to some students. "We'll be making the calls tonight. Hopefully by then the perpetrators will be caught."

Finn shook his head. "Can we get out of here?" he asked the police officer.

The officer nodded. "I'll be coming by your houses tomorrow for statements," the man told the group.

Finn looked at his friends; the rest of the Glee Clubbers had caught up with Santana. "We don't have to worry about meeting up tomorrow, but this is a different level of danger we're dealing with. I want you to all be careful, even around your homes." He watched the ambulance drive off, sirens blaring. "These guys are crazy."

"I'm going to stay at your house," Santana told Puck. He nodded. Santana was dealing with a lot of things right now, but Puck would always be one of her closest friends. When she'd thought he was going to fall, her heart literally stopped beating.

"And I'm going to stay at yours," Rachel told Finn softly.

"Do you think your dads will mind?" he asked her.

Rachel shook her head. "Let's go ask them."

Finn looked at his friends one more time. "Please be careful," he said again. "I don't want any of you to be hurt."

"You either, man," Sam told him. "You guys stay safe."


	10. Chapter 10

Rachel's dads hadn't wanted her to stay with Finn but she'd been adamant. In the end, they knew that she would be safe at his house and relented. Carol and Burt didn't have a problem with it, so Finn had taken Rachel back to her house to pick some stuff up and then driven her to the Hummel-Hudson household.

They were both exhausted when they walked into the house. Carol hugged Finn tightly; she and Burt had been searching at the other end of town for Jacob, but she'd heard about what Finn and Puck had done. "Has anyone heard how the boy's doing?" Burt asked Rachel.

Rachel shook her head. "I haven't heard anything," she said. "Finn wants to go to the hospital, but I convinced him that we can wait until the morning."

Carol let go of Finn to grab Rachel in a hug. "How are you, Rachel?"

"I'm good," Rachel said, smiling tiredly and hugging her back.

Carol pulled back and stared into her face. "You two go on downstairs and get some rest," she said.

"Love you guys," Finn said, putting his arm around Rachel's shoulders.

"Love you too," Carol told him. When Finn and Rachel were out of sight, she turned to Burt. "Do you think they'll be okay?"

Burt pulled her to him for a hug. "I think they'll have to be," he told her.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Rachel walked over to Finn's bed and fell into it. Finn lay down beside her and she curled into him. "I feel like all I do lately is cry," she said thickly.

Finn stroked her hair. "It's been a rough week, Rach," Finn told her. "Cry if you need to."

"I have this ball of feelings in my chest and I'm not sure what they mean or what they are," she told him. "It's just this tight, achy feeling."

"Are they always there or do they go away?" he asked her.

She thought about it for a moment. "There are times that they're dimmer, but they're always there."

"What's going on when they're dimmer?"

"I'm with you," she said, smiling. She propped her head up on her arm and looked down at him. "You scared me tonight. I was so afraid you were going to fall."

"I didn't, though," he reminded her softly.

Rachel nodded. "I thought Jacob was dead." She shook her head. "It's just too much. Why are they doing this to us?"

"Because they're cowards," Finn told her. "We'll find out who it is, Rach. I promise."

"How?"

"Puck and I are going to visit Karafosky tomorrow, see what he knows. Maybe we'll get lucky."

Rachel sighed. "I need to change into my pajamas," she said, getting up. A knock at the top of the steps warned them of Kurt's arrival.

"I just dropped Blaine off at his house," Kurt told them, hugging Rachel. "I'm glad you're here," he told her.

Rachel smiled at her friend. "Me too," she said. "I'm going to go get changed. You two can talk." Both sets of eyes followed her up the stairs.

"She looks like she's about to fall apart," Kurt told Finn.

Finn nodded, then fell back on his bed. "She's stronger than she looks, but even the strongest person would struggle with what she's had to go through lately."

"What about you?" Kurt asked him, dumping some of Finn's laundry into the floor to sit on his chair.

"I'm trying to hold it together," he told his brother.

"And how's that working out for you?" Kurt said, watching him.

Finn looked at him. "I don't know," he admitted. "I honestly don't know."

"You probably saved Puck's life," Kurt told him. "If not his life, then you at least kept him from breaking most of the bones in his body."

"Yeah," Finn said. "I didn't really think about what I was doing."

"And that's why you're such a great leader," Kurt told him. "It's natural."

Finn shrugged. "If I was such a great leader, my friends wouldn't still be getting hurt."

"That's not true," Kurt told him. "We're doing the best we can. If it makes any difference, you're officially my hero."

Finn grinned at his brother. "Thanks, man."

Kurt nodded. "I just wish you'd dress better."

Finn threw his pillow at Kurt's head. Laughing, Kurt stood up. "I'm exhausted. I think I'm going to go up and moisturize and then sleep for about ten hours."

Rachel came back down the stairs in her pj's. "Your pajamas remind me of a twelve year old's, Rachel," Kurt told her, smiling. "A cute one, though."

Rachel laughed and looked down at the cami and shorts she was wearing. They had smiling stars all over them. "I like them," she told Kurt.

"I like them too," Finn said from the bed, looking at her.

"Oh dear, it is definitely time for me to leave," Kurt said, kissing Rachel on the cheek.

Rachel walked over to the bed, dropping her bag in the chair Kurt had just vacated. Getting her brush out of the bag, she walked over to Finn's mirror and began running it through her hair. Finn watched her for a minute, realizing he wasn't nearly as tired as he'd thought he was. "What did Kurt say?" Rachel asked him.

"Nothing, really," Finn told her, sitting up.

"I wonder how everyone else is holding up," she said after a moment. "This has to be stressful on them too."

Finn nodded. "I'm sure it is." He stood up. "I'm more worried about you, though," he told her, walking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her.

She met his eyes in the mirror. "I'm going to be okay," she told him.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," she said, smiling at him. "Are you?"

"I think so." He bent his head and kissed her neck. "You smell good."

Rachel closed her eyes and leaned back against him. "I loved you before, you know." She put her hand over his clasped ones. "I really did. But now…with everything that's happened and the way we're both changing…" she opened her eyes and met his in the mirror. "It's so much more now."

Finn nodded. He knew what she meant. He'd always cared about Rachel; he'd loved her for almost as long as he'd known her. But now it _was _different. It was stronger, deeper. He walked backwards, towards the bed, pulling her with him. Rachel set her brush back on her bag and followed him. He sank down into the bed, pulling her down next to him. Rachel's head lay on his arm and she put her leg over his. Placing soft kisses along his jaw line, she whispered, "I love you so much."

Finn closed his eyes, his hand clenching the fabric of the pajamas at her waist. Just being around Rachel was enough to drive his body crazy. When she was wearing so little, kissing him, and lying in his bed, he felt like he was going to explode at any minute. Finn turned his head and his lips caught hers in a tender kiss. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," he said against her lips.

Rachel pulled back and looked at him. "Why?'

Finn groaned and put his head back on his pillow. "You drive me crazy," he told her. Rolling his head so he was looking at her, he smiled slightly. "The way you smell and the sounds you make and the softness of your skin…you're magic."

Rachel smiled at him. "I'm magic?"

Finn rolled back onto his side and grinned at her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to him. "You're magic," he said again, kissing her. He pulled her tighter to him, tangling his hand in her hair. Deepening the kiss, Rachel's tongue caressed his. Finn's hand left her hair and moved down her arm, cupping her butt. He moved his hips into hers, rubbing himself against her.

Rachel gasped, pulling away. "No," she said, trembling. "Stop."

Finn felt as if she'd poured ice water on him. Quickly putting distance between them, he watched her sit up and put her face in her hands, crying. "Oh God, Rach, I'm so sorry," he said. "I didn't think about what I was doing. I was so stupid."

Rachel threw her arms around his neck, shaking her head. "I'm sorry," she said, sobbing. "I didn't mean to say that. I know it's you, I know you'd never hurt me."

Finn held her. "Honey, you were attacked just a few days ago. I should have never…" he broke off, sighing. "I'm sorry."

"Will you hold me?" Rachel asked, looking up at him. "Will you still hold me while I go to sleep?"

"Of course," he told her, once again lying beside her. "I'm with you, Rachel. I'm always going to be with you. Go to sleep and dream of good things."

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you too," he said. He held her long after she fell asleep, watching her face in the moonlight. He was still wearing his jeans, so he knew he'd have to get up and change eventually, but he didn't want to disturb her. An hour later, he heard the phone ring upstairs and decided that he'd get changed into his pajamas and run upstairs for something to drink. Looking at the clock, he realized how late it was and wondered why someone would be calling at this time.

"Finn," his mom called from the top of the stairs as he changed. "Finn, honey, are you up?"

"Yeah," he called quietly to his mom. "Hold on a second." He pulled his pajama pants up and climbed the stairs.

"Finn, Leroy just called," Carol told him when he reached the top.

"What's going on?" he asked worriedly.

"Someone threw a large rock into Rachel's bedroom window tonight," she told him.

"What the fuck?" Finn said, then, "Sorry Mom." He ran his hand through his hair. "Are they okay?"

Carol nodded. "They're fine," she told him. "They're glad Rachel wasn't there."

"Who's doing this?" he asked. "Why are they doing this?"

Carol hugged him. "People don't like to change," Burt said, coming into the kitchen rubbing his eyes. "This new anti-bullying policy is basically telling them they can't be who they are anymore."

"So they're mad they can't be assholes anymore?" He flinched. "Sorry, Mom."

Burt shrugged, sitting at the table. "That would be my guess."

"This is such bullsh- crap," Finn said. "The school is supposed to be safer now."

"You've been standing up, Finn. That's brave of you. But when you stand against something, you make enemies," Burt told him.

"So I should just sit back and do nothing?" Finn asked angrily.

"No, you should do exactly what you're doing," Burt told him. "But you need to be prepared for things like this."

"Rachel is about to break," Finn told them, leaning against the wall. "I can feel it. Something like this…" He shook his head.

"Her dads don't want you to tell her about it," Carol told him.

"What?"

"They've got someone over fixing the window right now. By the time Rachel gets home tomorrow, she'll never be able to tell anything happened."

"So I'm supposed to lie to her?"

Carol frowned. "Finn, it's up to you to do what you want. Her father's would like to keep it from her. Whether or not you do is up to you."

Finn let out a long breath. "I'll think about it," he told them.

"How are you doing?" Burt asked him.

"I just feel like too much is going on," Finn told him. "It's like I can't process all of it."

"You need to get some sleep," Burt told him. "Carol and I are going to be up for a while; we're watching a movie. You can stand down." He smiled a little.

Finn nodded. "I'll see you guys in the morning." On his way down the steps, he realized that his mom and Burt were probably going to be up because they were worried someone would throw a rock into one of the windows in the house. "Shit," he mumbled to himself.

Rachel was curled up in the middle of his bed. He smiled as he looked down at her. She looked like she didn't have a care in the world. If only that were true. Sighing, Finn sat in the chair beside his bed, putting his face in his hands. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to find the people responsible for this and beat the shit out of them. He needed to protect Rachel. After everything that had been done to her, he couldn't stand for her to go through more.

He picked his cell phone up from his bedside table and texted Puck, telling him about Rachel's window and asking if he'd heard about anything else happening. A few minutes later Puck texted him back and told him that they were going to kill the bastards that kept messing with Rach and that as far as he knew, everyone else was fine. Finn stared at his phone for a few more minutes, then put it down. He moved slowly into the bed, careful not to wake Rachel. Putting his arm around her, he wondered if things would look better in the morning.


	11. Chapter 11

Rachel woke up well before Finn; she figured he'd been awake most of the night. His face had been the first thing she'd seen when she opened her eyes, and she was a bit scared at how perfect that had felt. She was 17 years old…she shouldn't be thinking about things like this. Should she?

She walked up the stairs and used the bathroom, brushing her teeth and washing her face. She looked tired. She grimaced when she noticed that the bruises on her face and body were changing into even more colors. Things get worse before they get better, right? The look on Finn's face when she's cried out for him to stop flashed through her mind. She couldn't believe she'd done that; she certainly hadn't meant to. She loved Finn and she wanted to be with him. It was just…when he'd pushed himself against her, it had reminded her of the attack.

Rachel frowned at herself in the mirror. She didn't want to be the girl that couldn't get over things. She didn't want to be the girl that let her attacker win. And she didn't want Finn to be the boy she took it all out on. Shaking her head, she walked into the kitchen. Carol had left a note telling them to both get some rest. Kurt had gotten up early to go to Blaine's (Rachel could barely believe that; maybe Kurt had been more affected by the recent attacks than he'd let on) and she and Burt were both working. She asked for Finn to please be careful…and to not eat all of the leftover meatloaf. Rachel smiled slightly to herself, wondering if she would have to leave notes like that to Finn for the rest of her life.

She stopped walking. Would she and Finn really be together for the rest of their lives? She sat down on the top step leading to his room and played out various scenarios of her life; they all had Finn in them. When she tried to imagine her life in New York without him, she couldn't. "Huh," she said out loud.

She walked down the steps and found him sprawled out over the bed. She chuckled quietly, not surprised that he'd completely taken over the bed in her absence. He looked so sweet, lying there. She hated the hard look he'd adopted recently. She didn't want Finn's life to be constant fighting; who could be happy like that? Besides Santana…

She sat on the edge of the bed, watching him sleep. When she'd thought he was going to fall her heart had literally stopped beating. She'd been afraid that she'd have nightmares last night, but she hadn't. Maybe subconsciously she'd known that Finn's arms were around her and she was safe.

She'd kept her eyes away from his bare chest, simply because when she looked at it it did funny things to her head. She touched his skin, shocked at how warm he always was. She ran her fingers lightly over his stomach, trailing them up his chest. He was such a beautiful man, but he didn't seem to realize it. This summer he'd worked hard and everything about him had become more defined. Sometimes when she'd look at him it was all she could do to not rip her own clothes off and beg him to take her.

Rachel giggled softly at her own thoughts. Finn would probably pass out if she did that. Before the attack, she'd decided that Finn was going to be "The One." She'd always known, but she'd finally made the official decision. She hadn't told him, of course, but he'd figure it out when it happened. She sighed as her thumb ran over his lips. He'd always been so patient and gentle with her, never pushing her to do anything she didn't want to. He was amazing.

Without thinking about what she was doing, Rachel leaned over and placed a kiss on his chest. When he didn't move, she smiled. Lightly kissing her way up his body, she made her way to his neck. "Rachel," he groaned, reaching for her.

"Shhh," she said, pushing his hands away. "Let me touch you."

Finn's eyes opened slightly and he watched as she straddled his hips, kissing his body. His arms came up but he put them behind his head, as if to keep from touching her. She knew he was afraid of scaring her and she felt bad all over again about what had happened last night.

"I love your chest," she told him, running her fingers over it. "It's beautiful." Finn just watched her with heavy lidded eyes. "I love this little trail of hair that goes down your stomach, too," she said, following it with her fingers. Finn sucked in a breath but otherwise remained motionless. Rachel leaned over and kissed his skin, her tongue darting out to taste it. Finn clenched his fists behind his head, his arms tensing.

Rachel's hands found his shoulders and she ran her hands along his arms, then back. "Such strong shoulders," she said softly. "They carry too much." She leaned over again, kissing first his left shoulder, then his right; she kissed along his collarbone and up his neck. "You know what I love about your neck?" she whispered in his ear.

"What?" he asked thickly.

Rachel's hand tangled in his hair and she looked down into his eyes. "Whenever I kiss it you get goosebumps all over your body," she told him, her eyes moving to his mouth.

"Rachel," he warned, holding himself rigidly still.

Rachel lowered her lips to his, kissing him hungrily, pulling gently at his bottom lip with her teeth. Finn groaned. "What are you doing to me?"

"Loving you," she told him quietly. She sat up, pulling her cami over her head. She wasn't wearing a bra and Finn's hand came out from behind his head before he could stop them. Realizing what he was doing, he put them back.

Rachel laid down on top of him, gasping against his mouth at the feel of his bare chest against hers. His lips found hers and he kissed her deeply. Propping herself up with her hands at either side of his head, she looked at him. "Is this okay?"

Unable to speak, Finn nodded his head. Rachel kissed his neck again, her teeth scraping his ear lobe. Finn jerked instinctively, then forced his body to remain still. Rachel's tongue ran over his nipple, then down his stomach. Reaching the waistband of his pants, she rose long enough to pull them down.

"Rachel," he said hoarsely, "what-"

"Shhh," she told him again. She stared at his body, taking it all in. Being Rachel Berry, she'd of course looked up the male anatomy and what exactly went on during sexual intercourse. Nothing had prepared her for the warmth that coursed through her body at the sight of her boyfriend naked. Nothing she'd read had told her about the tension she'd feel, the need to touch him, the aching desire for him to touch her. Rachel touched him, softly, and was amazed at how soft he felt. Taking him in her hand, she was surprised when he jerked under her. She looked at him and found his eyes closed, his jaw clenched. "Does that hurt?"

Finn didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Doing neither, he shook his head. The feel of her mouth on him was almost too much. "Rachel," he cried, his hips involuntarily rising to meet her mouth. He could feel her smile against him and he opened his eyes to watch her. Holding her hair back with one hand, she used the other one to stroke him as she licked the length of him. He was going to die. He was sure of it. "Rachel, stop, please," he begged, terrified he was going to explode at any moment.

She looked at him, frowning. "Am I doing it wrong?" she asked him.

"No, God, no," he told her. "I just can't," he jerked again, "I just can't take much more of that."

"Oh," she said. She looked at him. "Can I see your hand?" she asked.

Confused, Finn brought his hand out from behind his head and gave it to her. "I love your hands," she told him, studying it. "They're so strong." She looked at him. "Will you touch me?"

Finn watched her. "You want me to?"

"Oh yes," she said, nodding. "So much."

Finn brought his other hand from behind his head. "Where do you want me to touch you?"

Rachel took his hands and placed them on her breasts. "Here," she said, leaning towards him. "Here's good."

Finn's hands cupped her breasts, his thumbs rubbing over her nipples. "Like this?" he asked her.

Rachel nodded, distracted by the streaks of heat that were shooting through her body and pooling between her legs. She rocked against him and they both gasped. "And…there?" she asked him, biting her lower lip.

"Are you sure?" he asked her.

Rachel nodded. "I'm sure."

Finn put his hands on her thighs, his thumbs rubbing against the insides of them. "Why are you doing this, Rach?" he asked her huskily.

"I want you," she said simply. "I've always wanted you."

Finn's hands clenched on her thighs. "You know that you don't have to do this, right?"

"Finn," Rachel said, breathing hard as she rubbed herself against him again, "please shut up and touch me."

Finn smiled, shaking his head. She wouldn't have to tell him again. She rose up, awkwardly pulling her pajama shorts off. She wasn't wearing any underwear and his mind completely blanked out for a moment upon that discovery. She hadn't had underwear on this whole time? And God, she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. Her body was perfect.

Completely naked on top of him, Rachel knew she should have felt self conscious. The way Finn was looking at her, though…the way he was touching her…she knew he loved the way she looked. He rose up, catching her breast in his mouth and sucking slightly, his tongue moving around her nipple. Rachel moaned deeply, both hands in his hair. He moved to the other breast and she cried out as he bit her gently.

Finn's hand moved up her thigh, finding her wet core. Rachel shrieked as he rubbed her, her entire body tightening. He looked into her eyes as his fingers moved over her, smiling slightly when she closed her eyes and threw her head back. God, he loved her. Kissing her neck, he moved his finger inside her, marveling at how tight she was. Would he even fit?

Oh shit. "Rachel," he said, still moving his fingers against her. "I don't have a condom."

Rachel opened her eyes and looked at him, her breath falling out of her mouth in little gasps. "You don't need one," she told him. "I'm on the pill." She leaned her head down, shocking him when her tongue plunged into his mouth. Breaking the kiss off to moan, she looked at him. "Finn, I need," she gasped, her hips rocking against his hand. "Something more," she said, grinding herself against his hand. "Please," she begged, her hair falling into her face.

"Baby," he said, putting his hands on her hips, "are you sure?"

Rachel nodded, kissing him again. "I need you," she softly pleaded. "Please, Finn?"

He nodded, lifting her slightly. She sat on her knees as he positioned himself under her. "This will hurt, Rachel and I don't want to hurt you," he told her.

"I'm hurting now," she told him, looking into his eyes. "I need you," she said again.

He nudged himself against her opening, using his hand to ready her. He slid her down on him a little, stopping because he was sure his chest was going to explode. She was so wet and so tight…it was beyond anything he'd ever imagined. He was afraid he wasn't even going to make it all the way inside her before he came.

Rachel moaned, leaning over to kiss him wetly. She had never felt such an ache before, and she knew that she needed Finn inside her. She lowered herself on him a little more, feeling him stretch her. It hurt, but it felt good too. How crazy was that?

In one move, Finn pulled her down on him, unable to wait any longer. Rachel cried out in pain, putting her forehead against his. "I'm so sorry," he told her, kissing her tears. "I'm sorry, baby."

Rachel shook her head, the pain already subsiding. The feel of him inside her was more perfect than she'd ever imagined anything being. "Finn," she said against his lips, "love me."

Finn kissed her, his hand finding her center again. She tightened around him even more and he broke the kiss off, watching her. Rachel moved her hips against him, slowly at first. His hand against her caused waves of heat to flow through her and she found that when she moved the heat was magnified. The heat kept building and building. She said his name over and over, but she didn't realize she was doing it. Her body was searching for something. She moved faster on top of him, pressing her chest against his. A moan started from deep within her chest and she rolled her hips against his as the heat exploded inside her. Crying, she moved wildly on top of him, her whole body trembling with her release.

As she came around him, Finn let his own release happen. Wrapping his arms around Rachel and pulling her down on top of him, he pounded into her. His whole body was on fire as he came, calling her name.

Rachel laid on top of him, breathing hard. Finn held her tightly, and he could feel her heart beating against his chest. Their bodies, slick with sweat, started to get cold as the air conditioning in his room kicked on. With one arm, he grabbed the cover that had fallen to the side of the bed and pulled it over them.

"That was perfect," she said wonderingly. "I knew it was going to hurt, but I hadn't expected how good it would feel."

"I didn't either," he told her. She looked at him and he lowered his lips to hers, kissing her sweetly. "You're amazing," he told her quietly.

Rachel smiled against his lips. "This will probably have to go down as the greatest moment of my life," she told him.

"Mine too." He closed his eyes. Nothing, in the history of history, could have ever been as perfect as this moment. His arms tightened around her and he pulled her tightly to him, hugging her. "I love you," he told her.

Rachel realized she was crying again. Embarrassed, she buried her face against his neck. "What's wrong?" he asked her, rubbing her back.

"Nothing is wrong," she told him. "Everything is so _right_. It's scary."

Finn was silent and she finally looked up at him. "I've got you," he told her again with a smile. "And for the rest of my life I'm going to make sure everything is as right as it can be."

Rachel laughed. "Is that a way of saying you want to have lots of sex?"

Finn laughed loudly, surprised. "No," he told her after he'd stopped. "Although that's not a bad idea."

"I'm fine with it," she told him, smiling.

Finn groaned. "You couldn't be more perfect if you tried," he told her sincerely.

"Oh, I've tried," Rachel said. "It just didn't work out and I ended up being a crazy woman."

Finn rubbed her back. "I like your crazy," he told her.

Rachel smiled at him. "You have always sort of liked "Insane Rachel." I like that about you. You're a good man."

Finn sighed. "I don't ever want to leave this bed," he told her.

"We have to," she told him. "We have to go see Jacob."

"And Puck and I are going to see Karaofsky."

"Can I come too?" Rachel asked him, propping her head on his chest.

Finn shook his head. "I don't think it's a good idea."

Rachel blew her hair out of her eyes. "Fine. I'll stay at the hospital with Jacob."

Finn pushed her hair behind her ears. "It won't take long, I promise."

"Will you be careful?" she asked him. "You don't know for sure that Karofsky isn't a part of this."

"I'll be careful," he told her. "But you have to be careful too."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I'll be at the hospital. Of course I'll be fine."

"I hope Kurt doesn't decide to come down here," Finn said, remembering for the first time that they were in his house and that his family members could come in at any time.

"They're all gone," Rachel told him, putting her head back on his chest. "Kurt went to Blaine's."

"I wish he'd talked to me before he'd left," Finn said. He looked down at Rachel, naked under his blanket. "Never mind," he said, grinning.

Rachel laughed and kissed him.


	12. Chapter 12

Finn reached for Rachel's hand as they walked down the hallway of the hospital. He smelled like her shampoo…every time he caught a whiff of it, he was reminded of the shower they'd shared. She was, of course, too sore for them to make love again, but just spending time with her like that…he wanted more of it. With all of the craziness going on, Rachel was the string that was keeping him grounded.

Rachel knocked on Jacob's door and they were given permission to enter. "Hello, Rachel," Jacob's mother said, hugging the girl. Finn had never met Jacob's mother, but he could easily tell that's who she was; she and Jacob looked a lot alike.

"Mrs. Ben Israel," Finn said, shaking her hand. "I'm Finn Hudson."

She shook his hand, nodding. "I've watched you play football for years," she told him. "Jacob always wanted to play football, but he didn't like getting hit."

"Mom," Jacob said from the hospital bed. "I would like to be happy that I lived, please; not wishing that I had died."

"Sorry," his mother said. She smiled at Finn and Rachel. "I'll just give you a few minutes." She started to walk around Finn, then stopped. Grabbing him in a hug, she held him tightly. "Thank you for saving my son," she said. Before Finn could respond, she left the room.

"Women of all ages love you, huh, Hudson?" Jacob asked dryly from the bed.

"How are you Jacob?" Rachel asked him.

Jacob shrugged. "I'll live. Have a concussion, some broken ribs, was dehydrated," he made a rolling motion with his hand. "You know, the usual."

"You've been hurt like this before?" Finn asked him.

Jacob grimaced. "Not this bad, obviously, but being Jacob Ben Israel at McKinley doesn't bode well for my physical well being."

"Do you know who did it?" Rachel asked him. "Did you see them?"

Jacob shook his head. "They knocked me out from behind," he told her. "Thus, the concussion."

"You didn't see or hear anything?" Finn asked him, disappointed.

"I heard them walk up behind me," Jacob said. "I had started to turn around when they hit me."

"You keep saying "they." Why?" Rachel asked him.

Jacob shrugged, wincing. "It was more than one person," he told her. "More than one set of foot steps."

"Finn," Rachel said suddenly. "We forgot that Detective Bridges was coming by today."

Finn ran his hand through his hair. "That's right," he told her. "We'll run by the police station when we're done with everything and see if he's there." Rachel nodded.

"You look beautiful today, Rachel," Jacob told her. "I believe that a kiss would work wonders in healing me."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Not in this life, Jacob," she told him.

Finn sighed. "Quit putting the moves on my woman," Finn told him, winking at Rachel. "Look, Jewfr- Jacob, Puck and I are going out to see someone and I was hoping that I could leave Rachel here with you."

"Oh yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea," Jacob said excitedly.

Rachel looked at Finn, wide eyed. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea," she said.

Jacob frowned. "I'll behave, I promise," he told her.

Finn raised his eyebrows in her direction. "Okay, I'll be fine," she told him.

Finn kissed her. "I'll be back soon," he told her.

"What about Noah?" she asked.

"He should be here any minute."

"Be careful," she told him. "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, hugging her tightly.

Rachel watched him leave the room. Jacob sighed. "I guess I really don't have a chance, do I?"

Rachel smiled at him. "Sorry Jacob."

He shook his head. "Tell me about Ms. Fabray," he said, smiling. "Do you think she'd go for the fro?"

Rachel laughed.

Finn walked out to his truck, checking his phone when he got in it. Puck had sent him a text saying that his mother wouldn't let him leave without something to take to Jewfro at the hospital so he'd called Sam to go with Finn and he'd keep an eye on Rachel after he delivered whatever it was his mom was cooking. All of that in one sentence, no commas, no periods. Finn smiled. They were a lot alike. He texted Rachel to let her know about the change of plans, seeing Sam pull up beside him.

"Hey man," Sam said, hopping into Finn's truck. "Puck told me I needed to meet you here so I could be your babysitter." Finn rolled his eyes, smiling as he backed out of the parking spot.

"You know we're going to talk to Karofsky, right?" Finn asked him.

Sam nodded. "I don't like the idea of that dude's fist hitting my face again, so let's try not to get into a fight, okay?"

"Sounds good to me." He'd found Karofsky's address earlier and he had no trouble finding it. The Karofsky's lived in a large house on the North side of town.

Sam whistled. "This is where Karofsky lives? Damn."

Finn nodded. "This is it."

"I'd be happy if we could afford a house half this size," Sam said, almost to himself.

Finn put his hand on Sam's shoulder, squeezing it briefly. He rang the doorbell and they stood back and waiting. Karofsky's dad answered the door. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"We were wondering if we could talk to Dave," Sam said.

Mr. Karofsky looked at them, his face grim. "Are you part of whatever's going on?" he asked.

Finn looked at Sam. "What do you mean?"

Mr. Karofsky stepped out of the door, shutting it behind him. "You two think you're tough? Coming to my house, standing in front of _me_, threatening my son?"

"What are you talking about?" Finn asked him, confused.

"Don't play dumb with me," the man said angrily. "I know what you're doing."

"Well I'm glad you do, because I don't," Sam told him.

Finn shook his head. "Look, we just came to ask Karofsky some questions about an attack on some of our friends."

The man stared at them for a moment. "Some of your friends have been attacked?" he asked.

Sam nodded. "Four of our friends," Finn told him. "It's got to stop."

The man looked back at the house, then at Sam and Finn. "Aren't you the quarterback?"

Finn shrugged. "Yeah."

"But you're not part of the attacks?" he asked suspiciously.

"No, man, my girlfriend was one of the first people attacked. So was one of the cheerleaders, who is our friend from Glee Club."

"You're both in Glee Club?"

"Is that a problem?" Sam asked him, crossing his arms.

The man shook his head slowly. "No, no, that's good." He sighed. "I don't know if David can talk to you or not. He was attacked last night when he was leaving the grocery store."

Finn stood straighter. "What? Someone attacked Karofsky?"

Mr. Karofsky nodded. "He wouldn't let me take him to the hospital. He's too embarrassed. I had a friend of mine- she's a nurse- come over and check him out." The man cleared his throat, clearly upset. "I'm worried about his kidney's…he keeping urinating blood."

Sam looked at Finn. "What would cause that?"

"Repeated kicks to the kidneys," Mr. Karofsky answered.

Finn winced. "Please, sir, if there's any way we could talk to him…we could maybe figure out who's behind this."

The man sighed again. "Come in," he told them, opening the door. "I'll see if he's able to talk with you."

Sam and Finn walked into the house and sat where the man indicated they should. "I can't believe this is where Karofsky lives," Sam said again.

"Why would they attack him?" Finn wondered aloud. "It doesn't make sense."

Mr. Karofsky appeared at the door. "He'll see you in his room." The man turned around, then turned back to look at them. "Please don't stress him out or touch him."

"Shit," Sam said under his breath as they followed him to Karofsky's room. "He must be in bad shape."

Mr. Karofsky led them to his room, motioning them in. "David, just yell if you need anything. I'll be in the next room."

Finn and Sam were unprepared for the sight of David Karofsky. His face was almost unrecognizable. His nose was obviously broken, his lips swollen and bloody, his eyes almost shut. Black and blue bruises covered his face. "Damn, dude," Sam said. "Who did this to you?"

Karofsky turned his head to look at them. "Hudson," he said quietly, wincing as he spoke.

Finn walked closer to the other boy, kneeling beside the bed. He'd spent most of his time in high school hating this guy, but he would never wish this one anyone. He'd caught glimpses of a good guy in Karofsky, and even Kurt didn't hate him any longer. "Dave, who did this?"

"Josh and his gang," Dave told him.

"What the hell, man? Why didn't you tell the police?" Sam asked.

Dave opened his eyes and looked at Finn. "They'll all alibi each other," he told him. "They're each other's alibi. There's so many of them," he paused, taking a breath. "There's so many of them that charges will never stick."

"Who are they?" Finn asked.

"Football guys, hockey guys, basketball guys…hell, there's a little of everyone," Dave told him quietly. "And they're all after you."

Finn shook his head. "This is crazy," he said, fear settling in the pit of his stomach. "What are they trying to accomplish?"

Dave shrugged, then groaned in pain. "They're crazed, man. It didn't start off like this. They started off just being angry. Now they're insane."

"Mob mentality," Sam said. "Like what happens when a riot starts." Dave and Finn looked at him. He shrugged. "It starts off small, but by the time it ends people are dead and maybe hundreds are in jail. They all just get caught up in the mob mentality. It's like they temporarily lose their minds."

Dave nodded. "It's not just about the changes at school," he told them. "They're mad about everything. They're mad they're in Lima. They're mad that most of them won't get out. They're mad that they don't have dreams. They're just mad." He looked at Finn. "And you're the one they've chosen to take that anger out on."

"What happened to you?" Finn asked him.

Dave grimaced. "They wanted me to take your girl," he told Finn.

"What?" Finn said, standing up.

"They wanted me to catch Berry out somewhere and grab her. I wouldn't do it."

Finn felt as if the floor had dropped out from under his feet. "What do they want with Rachel?" Sam asked Dave.

Dave looked at Finn. "You don't want to know," he said lowly.

"Fuck man, I left her at the hospital!" Finn said, pulling his phone out of his pocket and calling Puck.

"Yeah," Puck said.

"They're after Rachel," Finn told him. "You have to get to her."

"What?" Puck said into the phone, stomping on the gas and passing a truck.

"Karofsky said that they're after Rachel," Finn said again, his voice shaking. "They're going to try to grab her."

"The fuck they are," Puck said, speeding up. "I'm almost at the hospital. Call Jewfro's room and tell her what's up. Have Sam call Mike and the other guys to meet us there."

"Okay," Finn said, his breathing rough. "Take care of my girl, Puck," he said to his friend. "Please take care of her."

"I'm on it," Puck said, hanging up.

Sam was talking into his phone. "Is Josh behind all of this?" Finn asked Dave.

"It's not just one guy," Dave told him. "It's all of them."

"We'll be back, man," Finn told him. "I've got to go."

"Take care of her," Dave told him. "They want to hurt her to hurt you."

Finn nodded. He and Sam passed Mr. Karofsky in the hallway. "Thank you," Finn said to the man as they ran out of the house.

Getting into the truck, Finn called the police station. "I need to talk to Detective Bridges," he told the woman who answered. She told him that the detective was out and asked if he wanted to leave a message. "Yes," he said, swerving around a car. "Detective Bridges, this is Finn Hudson. I just left David Karofsky's house. He was attacked last night but hasn't gone to the hospital. He told me that the attackers are after my girlfriend, Rachel Berry. I left her at the hospital with Jacob Ben Israel. If there's any way you could meet us there, that would be great." Finn left his number. He closed his phone and looked at Sam. "Did you get everyone?"

"Kurt, Blaine, Mike and Lauren are on their way to the hospital. The girls wanted to come too and I convinced them that it's not a good idea. Brittany is going to get Artie so he's not alone."

Finn nodded. This was the second time in a week he'd been so terrified he was numb. He called Rachel's cell phone but got her voice mail. Calling the hospital, he asked to be connected to Jacob's room but no one picked up. "Fuck!" he roared.

"We'll get there," Sam said. "She'll be okay."

Finn was silent for a moment, lost in thought. "Someone threw a rock in her window last night," Finn told Sam. "I never even mentioned it to her; I forgot."

"A rock?"

Finn nodded. "Her dads called and told my mom about it." He looked over at Sam briefly. "What if they weren't just trying to scare her? What if they'd been trying to take her last night?"

Sam was quiet, looking out the windshield. "Let's get to the hospital," he said. Finn nodded.

Rachel had wheeled Jacob around the entire hospital, answering questions about Quinn, Mercedes and Santana. Jacob was hoping to have a chance with one of them and Rachel didn't have the heart to tell the poor guy he didn't. Getting back to his room, she helped him get in his bed. "Do you need anything?" she asked him, helping him straighten the blankets out.

"Would you care to get me a Coke?"

"A Coke?" she asked.

"Yeah, from the machine out by the side door," he told her.

"No problem," she said. She was just glad she'd be leaving his room for a few minutes. She sighed as she shut the door behind her. If Broadway didn't work out, she knew that nursing was something she could mark off as a possibility. She walked to the Coke machine and pulled out a dollar, hoping the machine wouldn't give her any grief and just take it.

Someone grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth and pulling her out the side door of the hospital. Rachel screamed into the hand, but barely a sound escaped. Her eyes darted around wildly, searching for some form of help. She found none. The guy dragging her pulled her towards the parking lot, his other strong arm around her neck.

Rachel felt like she was going to pass out. She wasn't just scared; she couldn't _breathe_. The arm around her neck was cutting off her air supply. She desperately clawed at the arms holding her, but they didn't move. When he got her to the truck he was going to toss her in, Rachel saw Noah walking quickly towards the hospital entrance, not looking in her direction. Screaming his name against the hand that held her, she kicked backwards as hard as she could. With a grunt, the guy who had her loosened his grip on her a fraction of an inch. Pulling his hand down from her mouth, she screamed, "Noah!"

Puck heard Rachel scream and it chilled his blood. Whipping around, he saw her struggling with a large boy from the football team. "Get your fucking hands off of her!" he yelled, running towards the parking lot.

He ran straight to the struggling couple, getting ready to punch the man holding her, when a crowbar hit him in the side of the head. "Noah!" Rachel screamed again, fighting against the guy holding her with renewed vigor. "Noah!"

Puck looked up at her, dazed. He shook his head to clear it but it didn't work. The crowbar came down again and he heard the crunch of broken bones. His collarbone was on fire. Still, he staggered to his feet, lurching towards Rachel with his arms out.

"Stop!" she screamed. Where _was _everyone? "Help! Someone help! Noah!" Sobbing, she watched as the other football player hit Noah again and again, until he lay on the ground, motionless.

"No," she moaned, sick. "Noah."

"Fuck man, you know someone called the cops," the guy holding Rachel said.

"Get that bitch in the truck and let's get out of here."

Rachel twisted and fought, kicking and screaming. She clawed his face, digging her nails in as deeply as she could. "Stupid bitch!" he said, hitting her in the side of the face. Rachel felt her body go limp. "No," she said softly, reaching for Noah. She looked up and saw Finn and Sam running for the hospital door. "Finn," she said quietly. "Finn."

Finn stopped running, turning around. His eyes found Rachel's right before they closed. "You son of a bitch!" he screamed, running for the truck.

"Let's go, let's go!" the driver yelled.

"Fuck," the guy holding Rachel said. He turned quickly, shoving her into the truck and climbed in behind her.

Kurt, coming into the parking lot, saw Finn running after the truck. Acting on instinct alone, he drove behind the truck, causing it to ram him. Finn caught up to the truck, pulling the passenger side door open and dragging the man inside it out. Blaine jumped out of Kurt's SUV, running towards them. Kurt didn't know what to do. He was afraid that if he got out of the vehicle the driver of the truck would somehow get around him. Everything was happening so _fast_.

Nurses were running towards Sam, who was standing beside Puck and screaming for help. They put him on a stretcher and wheeled him into the emergency room. Sam turned and ran towards the truck. Finn had the passenger out on the ground and was beating the shit out of him. The driver jumped out of the truck and started running away. Sam ran after him, tackling him before he reached the end of his truck. The driver took the crowbar he'd used on Puck and hit Sam with it, knocking the other boy off of him. Sam sat on the ground, blood pouring out of a gash in his head.

Kurt saw the driver start to get up and pushed his door open, causing the other guy to run into it. He dropped to the ground, unconscious. He looked over at Blaine, who was trying to pull Finn off of the passenger; he wasn't moving. Kurt got out of the SUV and walked to Sam, helping him up. "You need to get inside the hospital," he told his friend.

Sam nodded, wincing. He started walking only to have his legs fall out from under him. He dropped to the ground just as Mike and Lauren drove up, stopping behind Kurt's SUV. "What's going on?" Mike asked him.

"I'm not sure," Kurt told him, falling down hard on his butt.

"Kurt, are you okay?" Lauren asked him.

Kurt put his head back against his tire. "I don't think so," he admitted, closing his eyes. "Someone please help Sam."

Lauren picked Sam up and carried him to the emergency room doors. Police cars descended upon the scene, lights and sirens blaring. Finn was still kicking the man on the ground when they grabbed him, pulling him back. They found Rachel in the truck, unconscious. Mike showed them where the driver lay on the ground, also unconscious.

Kurt put his head in his hands and cried.


	13. Chapter 13

"It's going to be okay," Blaine kept telling him.

Kurt continued to ignore him. There was no way this was ever going to be okay. Puck was in a coma. PUCK. How the hell did that happen? How _could _that happen? Rachel, after regaining consciousness, had finally cried herself to sleep. Finn was still with the police, and it had broken his heart every time Rachel had cried out for him and Kurt had had to tell her that he wasn't there. The guy who'd grabbed Rachel was in bad shape, and Kurt was terrified that Finn had killed him. The driver had been taken to jail after he'd regained consciousness. Sam was in a recovery room with 56 stitches in his head and a possible concussion.

And Kurt's SUV was totaled. Yeah, nothing about this was _okay_.

The rest of the Glee Club sat with them in the waiting room. Kurt was fairly certain that they were all in various states of shock. Carol hadn't stopped crying since she and his dad had gotten here. They all just felt so…useless.

Finn strode through the doors, still wearing the blood splattered shirt he'd had on earlier. "Finn!" Carol cried, rushing towards him and grabbing him in a hug.

"Thanks for being here," he told his mom. "How is she?"

"She's going to be okay," Carol told him.

"Is she awake?" he asked.

Carol shook her head. "She's asleep in Noah's room. She wouldn't leave him."

Finn nodded. "How is he, Mom?" For a moment, he sounded like the scared little boy he was.

"Oh, honey, I don't know," Carol said, crying. Behind her Santana began sobbing again and Quinn hugged her, rubbing her back. "He hasn't woke up."

Finn rubbed his face with his hands. "Will they let me see him?"

Carol nodded. "You can go in."

Finn looked at Kurt. "Walk with me?" he asked his brother.

Kurt nodded, getting up. "I'll be back in just a minute," he told Blaine.

"You did good today," Finn told him as they walked down the hallway.

"I'm not sure what happened, really," Kurt admitted. "I just reacted."

"I guess I'm not the only leader in our family then, right?" Finn said, smiling tiredly. "What about the guy I pulled out of the truck? Do you know how he is?"

"He's in pretty bad shape," Kurt told him honestly.

Finn sighed. "Shit."

Kurt looked at him, not wanting to say what he had to say. "He may not make it, Finn."

Finn's face paled and he stopped walking. "Did they say that?"

"Carol asked his parents. They're somewhere around here."

"Oh God," Finn said, bending over and taking deep breaths. "I didn't mean to…I mean, yeah, I wanted to beat the shit out of him, but I never meant to…"

"Breathe," Kurt told him. "Take deep breaths."

"This is so fucked up," Finn said, fighting back tears.

Kurt watched him. "It's okay to fall apart," he told him quietly.

Finn shook his head. "If I fall apart now, I don't know if I'll ever find all of the pieces to put myself back together."

"That's what friends are for," Kurt told him.

Finn looked at Kurt. "I'm losing this war," he told him. "I don't know how to stop them."

Kurt put his hand on Finn's shoulder, pulling him in for a hug. Finn's arms tightened around Kurt as a harsh sob escaped from his mouth. Kurt felt tears flowing down his own face. They had never imagined anything like this happening; the senselessness of it was horrifying. Only a week ago they were normal teenagers, excited about going back to school and being seniors. Now they'd been attacked; if not personally, then as a group.

Finn broke down. He'd been holding in his fear and his anger for so long he felt as if letting them go was like losing a part of himself. They stood in the hallway for a few minutes, Finn holding Kurt like he was drowning. Pulling back, Finn wiped at his face with both hands. "I'm sorry," he told the other boy.

"No, it's fine," Kurt said, pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiping his face with it. "I needed to cry too."

"I can't lose Puck," Finn said brokenly. "Not like this."

"We're not going to lose him," Kurt told him. "Now go in there and see them. I'm going back out to the waiting room."

Finn nodded. "Love you, Kurt," he told him. "I'm glad we're brothers."

Kurt smiled softly. "Me too."

Finn watched Kurt walk down the hall, then walked into Puck's room. His gaze immediately found Rachel, curled into a ball on the couch. She was still asleep, so he pulled the blanket she'd knocked off over her, brushing her hair away from her face. "I love you," he whispered to her.

He walked over to Puck's bed, looking at all of the machines hooked up to his friend before actually looking at the man. Most of Puck's head was covered in bandages, but what Finn could see of his face was discolored. "You did it, man," Finn told him quietly. "You saved my girl. If it wasn't for you, they would have taken her." Finn paused, his throat tightening with tears. "I'll never be able to repay you for that," he said. "I'm so sorry this has happened to you."

"Finn?" Rachel said, sitting up groggily.

"Hey baby," he told her, walking over to where she was and kneeling down.

Rachel reached for him, hugging him close to her. "Finn," she said against his neck. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he assured her. He pulled back and looked at her. "Are you okay?"

Rachel shook her head. "It's my fault Noah got hurt," she said, crying quietly. "If I hadn't screamed for him, this wouldn't have happened."

"No, it's not your fault. None of this is your fault, Rachel."

Rachel looked over at Puck. "I should have just gone with them," she told him, wiping at the tears on her face.

"Rachel, look at me," Finn said, taking her hands. Rachel looked into his eyes. "Do you remember how Santana blamed herself for your attack?" he asked her. Rachel nodded, hiccupping. "It's the same thing. Did you blame Santana for you getting hurt?"

Rachel shook her head. "It wasn't her fault."

"It's not your fault either, babe," he told her, kissing her softly. "The only people to blame are the ones that hurt you. This is on them."

Rachel nodded, putting her head on his shoulder. "Where were you?" she asked him. "Carol said that the police wanted to talk to you."

Finn rested his chin on top of her head. "I guess I attacked one of the police officers that responded to the scene," Finn told her. "I don't remember it, but that's what they said happened. After they questioned me, they didn't charge me with anything and let me come back here." He didn't mention the fact that he may still face charges…and serious ones.

Rachel lifted her head and scooted over on the couch, gesturing to Finn that he should sit beside her. He sat, then pulled her into his lap. "Do they know who's doing this?" she asked him.

"I know who's doing this," Finn told her. "Karofsky told me and Sam who it was." He lightly touched a new mark on her face, his body once again flushing in anger. "This has to end."

A knock sounded on the door and Quinn entered. "I didn't mean to interrupt," she told them, walking into the room. She looked at Puck, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Are you two okay?"

Rachel nodded. "We're fine."

"What is it?" Finn asked her. He wasn't being rude; he could tell that she had something to say.

"I got a text message earlier," she told them. "It was from Brandi." Brandi was another cheerleader on the Cheerios. "She told me that I had until 9 tonight to come to Josh's house and join them..." she paused, looking down, "or I'd be next." A lone tear fell down her face.

"What are you going to do?" Finn asked her.

Quinn looked up, startled. "Do you think I would join them after what they've done to us?"

"I know you wouldn't," Rachel said, looking at the girl. "And that means you're in danger."

Finn was silent for a moment. "Puck is going to have a guard overnight," he told the girls. "I've already talked to the police about it. His mother is still out of town and won't be able to get in until tomorrow." Quinn and Rachel looked at him. "Why don't you stay here tonight, with Puck? I'll try to figure something out by tomorrow." He sighed. "I really don't want to leave him alone, and I want to take Rachel home."

"I can do that," she said, again looking at Puck. "I wanted to stay anyway."

"Can your mom bring you some clothes?" Rachel asked her.

Quinn nodded. "I'll call her."

"Be sure to let the guard know what's up." He sighed. "I guess we need to have another group meeting," Finn said.

"Are they all still in danger?" Rachel asked him.

"Probably now more than ever," Finn told her sadly.

"I'm going to stay in here with Puck," Quinn told them. "Is that okay?"

Finn nodded. "I'll tell them what Brandi said."

Rachel hugged Quinn. "Please call us if he wakes up," she told the other girl. "No matter what time it is. Or if anyone tries anything, okay?"

Quinn nodded, hugging her back. "I will." She closed her eyes. "I'm sorry, Rachel, for everything."

"I know," Rachel said, pulling back. "It's okay."

Finn took Rachel's hand and nodded at Quinn. "We'll be back over in the morning."

Rachel and Finn walked back into the waiting room. "Has anything changed?" Santana asked.

Finn shook his head. "No."

"Where's Quinn?" Mercedes asked.

"She's staying with Puck."

"Why?" Tina asked.

Finn sat down and again pulled Rachel down on his lap, telling their friends about the text Quinn had gotten. "Holy shit," Brittany said. "I _knew _that girl was a bitch."

"Since Puck is going to have a guard at his door, Quinn is going to stay here with him. That way they won't be alone," Finn told them.

"What about us?" Mercedes said. "Are we still in danger?"

"I think so," Finn told them quietly.

"Why can't the cops do anything about this, Finn?" Burt asked.

Finn shrugged. "We're a small town. There aren't enough cops to guard every one of us, especially if they don't know who is in danger."

"Shouldn't Rachel have a guard?" Mike asked him.

Finn nodded. "I talked to the police about Rachel." He looked at her. "Where are your dads?"

"Probably on their way back here," she told him. "They went home to change clothes and were coming right back."

Finn nodded, staring at the ceiling for a moment. He looked at his friends, then at Rachel. "You dads didn't know if they wanted me to tell you this," he told her, "but someone threw a rock in your window last night."

"What?" Rachel asked, shocked. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I forgot about it," Finn admitted. "I'm sorry. I just had…other things…" he trailed off, blushing. He _prayed _that no one else figured out the cause of his embarrassment.

"Oh," Rachel said; she too blushed.

"Anyway," Finn said, not looking at his mother, "Sam and I were talking and we think that maybe they didn't just throw a rock in your window last night." He looked at her. "Maybe they were going to try to take you last night."

"Why are they focusing on Rachel?" Santana asked.

Finn explained about his visit to Karofsky's house. "Burt, if there's any way you can…could you go over and talk to Mr. Karofsky tomorrow? I really think Dave needs to go to the hospital."

"This is insane," Carol said. "How can so many teenagers get attacked and no one do anything?"

"Well, after I talked to the police about Rachel, they agreed to drive by our house every thirty minutes, checking for signs of something wrong."

"Your house?" Rachel asked. "Why your house?"

"The police agreed with me that you'd be safer at my house," Finn said. "Not only is there more people, but they won't expect you to be there." He looked at her. "I really think that you and your dads should just pack up and go somewhere, Rach."

Rachel stared at him. "Go somewhere? You mean run away?"

Finn sighed. "Protecting yourself isn't running away," he told her.

"No. I'm not doing that," Rachel said adamantly. "No way."

"Her fathers could stay with us too," Carol said, looking at Burt. "We have plenty of room since we built the addition."

Finn nodded, looking at his friends. "Look, guys, I'm so sorry I've brought this down on all of you. I would have never wanted any of you to be in danger, ever."

"We know that, bro," Sam said, walking towards them.

"Oh my gosh, Sammie, your hair!" Mercedes cried, rushing over to him.

Sam rubbed the part of his head that wasn't bandaged. "Yeah, they decided to just shave it all to make sure they weren't missing another gash. I guess there was a lot of blood."

Kurt nodded. "There was. And it looks good."

Sam smiled, wincing when the movement pulled at his stitches. "Thanks, man." He looked at Finn. "This isn't your fault. This has been building for years. We all know it. We've all felt it coming on. Rachel and Santana were attacked even before the school policy changed."

"That's true," Blaine said. "This evil has been around for a while."

Finn nodded. "You should all talk to your parents. Honestly, it wouldn't be a bad idea if everyone left town."

"Yeah?" Mike said. "What about you?"

"It's me they want," Finn said, shaking his head. "I don't know why, but it's always been me."

"It's because you are what they want to be," Rachel told him. "You're strong and you stand up for what you believe in. You're not afraid to do what you love, no matter what anyone says."

Finn smiled at her. "You showed me the way."

"So what should we do?" Lauren asked.

Finn shook his head, looking at his mom and Burt. "Don't ever be alone, even in your homes. Always keep your phone with you."

Rachel winced at that. "I am so sorry," she said, tearing up again.

"Shhh," Finn told her, hugging her.

"I don't want to be alone," Mercedes admitted. "Who wants to stay with me?"

Artie, Lauren, Brittany, Santana and Sam said that they'd stay with Mercedes. She lived in a huge house and had plenty of room. None of them really wanted to be alone. "I'm staying with Mike," Tina said. "Our parents already Okayed it."

"I guess I just need to talk to my dads," Rachel said.

"We'll talk to them when they get here, honey," Burt and Carol said. "You two go on to the house."

Rachel and Finn stood up. "You guys are staying?" he asked them.

Carol looked at Burt. "I think we'll stay until the guard gets here," she said.

Finn nodded, hugging her. "I love you guys."

The Glee Club gathered their things and walked towards the entrance. Sam ran to tell his parents the plan. "Wait just a minute for me, too," Finn told them. "I'm going to run down the hall. I think we should all leave together, but there's something I need to do." When everyone nodded, he leaned down to kiss Rachel. "Stay with them, okay?"

Rachel nodded. Finn walked down the hallway, stopping at the nurse's station. "Can you tell me what room Patrick Conner is in?" he asked one of the nurses.

"Honey, he's in ICU," the nurse told him. She looked at him for a moment. "You can go back there, but you can't go in his room, okay?"

Finn nodded and followed her down a hallway. They reached the end of it and she pointed at a window. "He's in there," she said.

Finn thanked her and walked to the window. Patrick looked just as bad as Puck. Finn took no satisfaction in that. He noticed the boy's parents sitting beside the bed and felt sick to his stomach. They didn't deserve any of this…none of them did. What caused a seemingly normal guy like Patrick to do the things he'd done?

Patrick's father looked up and saw Finn. Finn braced himself as the man walked out into the hallway. "Hudson," the man said.

"I didn't mean for this to happen," Finn told the man. His wife had come outside, holding onto his shoulders.

"The police told us what Patrick was doing," she told Finn. "We knew something was wrong…we just didn't know how wrong."

"Is he…" Finn broke off, looking into the window at the other boy. "Is he going to be okay?"

The man sighed, shaking his head. "He woke up for a few moments. The doctor said he believes he's going to pull through. And after we handle his legal problems, we're getting the hell out of Lima."

"I wanted to come by and tell you that I don't regret hitting him, but I am sorry it got so out of hand." He shook his head and looked back towards the way he came. "The things they've been planning for my girlfriend…" He broke off and looked at them. "Maybe it's best he did leave Lima."

Patrick's dad opened his mouth, but his wife pulled him into the room. "Thanks for letting us know," she told Finn, shutting the door. She pulled the curtains closed and Finn shoved his hands in his pockets, walking off. That hadn't really gone the way he'd planned it.

He rejoined the group at the entrance of the hospital. "I told Jacob goodbye," Rachel told him, taking his hand as they walked out.

"Good."

"Finn, we'll follow you guys out. We're going the same direction," Mercedes told them, climbing into her SUV.

"I've got to take Blaine home to get some clothes," Kurt told Finn and Rachel.

"Kurt," Finn said, pulling him and Blaine aside, "please be careful. They know we're brothers."

Kurt stared at him, then nodded. "Noted." He and Blaine walked towards Burt's truck. "Hey, Blaine, get that tire iron out of the back." He looked back at Finn. "Just in case."

Finn nodded to him. He opened his passenger door, then put his hands around Rachel's waist and lifted her into the truck. Moving between her legs, he put his face in the curve of her shoulder, catching a whiff of her shampoo. It almost made him cry now to think about how happy they were this morning, taking a shower together. Rachel wrapped her arms around him, rubbing his back. "It's okay," she told him, realizing that his whole body was trembling.

"If Puck hadn't stopped them," Finn said hoarsely, "they would have had you."

"But he did," she whispered soothingly. "I'm fine."

Finn didn't move for a moment, taking deep breaths. He pulled back and looked into her eyes. "We're going to end this thing," he told her.

Rachel saw the fight in his eyes and felt the stirring of it in her own heart. They _were _strong, dammit. They were going to win this thing. "I know," she told him, smiling a little.

Finn kissed her hard, shut her door and walked around. He waved to Mercedes, who pulled out behind him. "You don't think your dads will care, do you?" he asked her, turning on his headlights. He hadn't even realized it was getting dark. Mercedes turned her lights on behind them.

"Nah," Rachel said, reaching for his hand. "Do you think Noah will be okay?" she asked, not looking at him. He could see her throat working and knew she was close to tears again.

"He will be," Finn said with more confidence than he felt. Crowbars didn't bend. He squeezed Rachel's hand. "We're all going to be okay."

Rachel nodded, rubbing her thumb across his knuckles. Getting out of town, the roads got darker. Rachel turned on the radio and tried to find something to listen to. Not finding anything, she turned it off. "I feel like I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop," she said, staring out the windshield.

Finn nodded and looked in the rear view mirror. Mercedes had fallen behind so he slowed down a little to let her catch up. He looked over at Rachel. "Just think about how great New York is going to be next year."

She nodded, smiling at him. "You're right. We're all going to get out of here."

Smiling, Finn looked in the rear view mirror again just in time to see Mercedes' SUV run off of the road.


	14. Chapter 14

Finn slammed on his brakes, stopping in the middle of the road. Throwing his truck into reverse, he put his arm behind Rachel and backed up. "What happened?" Rachel said, turning around to look behind them.

"Mercedes just went off the road," Finn said grimly.

"Oh no," Rachel said, unbuckling her seat belt.

As Finn got closer to Mercedes SUV, he saw a truck behind it. People surrounded the SUV, but when Finn stopped the people from the other truck scrambled to get back in their vehicle. Finn jumped out of his truck and grabbed his own tire iron, running towards them. The truck revved its engine as it started up, people still climbing in the back. Once they were in the driver hit the gas, spinning gravel. Rachel hopped out of Finn's truck and ran to Mercedes' SUV to check on their friends. Finn watched the truck take off and realized that it was heading straight for her. "Rachel!" he yelled, dropping the tire iron and running towards her.

Reaching her, he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her out of the path of the truck. They landed on the ground hard, knocking the breath out of both of them. Dazed, they laid there as the truck sped off. Shaking his head to clear it, Finn rose, running his hands down the length of her body, searching for signs of broken bones or other wounds. Rachel grabbed both hands and held them to her face, forcing him to look at her. "I'm okay," she told him. "I'm okay."

Finn nodded, looking up at Mercedes' SUV. Getting up, he held his hand out for Rachel and helped her up as well. "Mercedes?" she said, moving to the driver's door. Mercedes opened the door, visibly trembling as she got out of the vehicle. Sam got out of the passenger side, shutting the door and leaning against it.

"What happened?" Finn asked Mercedes as Rachel ran to Sam to make sure his stitches hadn't broken open.

Mercedes shook her head. "They came up behind me," she said, her voice trembling. "I noticed that they were moving fast and I slowed down so they could pass me."

"They just rammed us," Sam said, his voice shaking.

Mercedes nodded. "I tried to keep it on the road, but they just kept ramming into the back of us."

"You did good," Sam told her. "There wasn't anything else you could have done."

Rachel looked at the vehicle. "What happened to the sides of it?" she asked, noticing for the first time the cracked windows and dented doors.

"They started beating on the doors and windows with bats," Mercedes said, staring off into the woods on the other side of the road. "Baseball bats. Can you believe that? They wouldn't stop…"

Finn caught her as she fell to the ground, dazed. Rachel ran back to his truck and got her cell phone, calling 911. "You're okay, Mercedes," Finn told his friend, nodding at Sam when the other boy bent down to talk to her.

"We're both okay," Sam told her. "You did a good job."

Mercedes shook her head, breathing hard. "They want to kill us," she said, tears flowing down her face. "I've never done anything to them and they want to kill me."

Sam didn't know what to say, so he sat down beside her and put his arm around her. Finn looked up at Rachel. "What did the police say?" he asked.

"They're on their way," Rachel said, joining them. Finn stood up and hugged her to him.

"You saw that, right? You saw that they were going to hit you." He knew that his voice was as shaky as Sam's had been but he couldn't steady it. His knees were still weak with leftover fear.

Rachel nodded, her face buried in his chest. "I saw."

Finn held her, looking down the road in the direction the two trucks had gone. "Who was it, did anyone get a look?"

Sam nodded. "It was some of those hockey guys."

Mercedes wiped her face. "And a couple of girls from the Cheerios," Mercedes said. "They looked crazy." She leaned her head back against her SUV and looked at Sam. "Didn't they look crazy? They were screaming at us, cursing us." Another tear ran down her face but she didn't wipe it off. "I was friends with some of those girls, remember?" Sam squeezed her shoulder. "Why are they trying to hurt us?"

Sam shook his head, looking at Finn. "I saw them aim for Rachel and I didn't think you were going to get to her in time."

"I didn't either," Finn said lowly.

Mercedes closed her eyes. "I thought you guys were going to get hit," she said. "And then they were going to get out again and kill us." She looked at her friends. "This ain't right, y'all. There's no reason for any of this to be happening."

"You're right," Rachel said. "It's like a horror movie."

"The good guy always wins in the end of horror movies, right?" Sam asked, trying to lighten the mood.

Mercedes looked at him. "After all of his friends are dead."

They didn't speak again until the police showed up.

Rachel didn't call her fathers, planning on just telling them about the incident when they got to Finn's house. Mercedes parents had to come pick her up and Mercedes had texted the other Glee Clubbers that were waiting for her at her house to let them know what was going on.

Sam and Mercedes gave the police the names of the kids they recognized and Finn gave them a description of the truck they were in. When the police had finished with them and they could finally leave, Rachel hugged Mercedes. "I love you," Mercedes told Rachel. "You and that man of yours. You guys be careful, okay?"  
>Rachel nodded, unable to speak for fear she'd start crying again. Finn helped her back into his truck and they followed a police car to his house. The officer insisted on checking out the house, so Finn took him through all of the rooms. Rachel got in the shower while Finn showed him out, leaning her head against the tile and crying.<p>

"Rach?" Finn asked softly, stepping into the bathroom and leaning against the door.

"Yeah?" Rachel said wobbly, scrubbing her face.

"Are you okay?"

Rachel shook her head "no" but said, "Yeah, I'm good. Did you hear from my dads?"

Finn sighed. "Yeah, they're still at the hospital with Burt and Carol; the guard for Puck hasn't shown up yet." He played with his cell phone. "The officer that was just here said that he's been told to stay here to keep a lookout on the house in case something happens."

"That's good," Rachel said, biting her bottom lip. "Any word on Noah?"

"No change," Finn said, grimacing. "I told our parents about Mercedes. The idea of everyone just getting out of town until these guys are stopped keeps looking better and better." Rachel was silent and he sighed. "I'll be out here if you need me," he told her, turning away.

"I need you," she said, so softly he almost didn't hear her.

"What?" he asked.

Rachel pushed the shower curtain open a little. "I need you."

Finn saw the pain in her eyes. He knew the same pain was in his. He nodded, pulling his shirt off and taking off his pants. Naked, he joined her in the shower, wrapping his arms around her as she did the same. The warm water poured over them as they stood there, holding each other. Finn kissed her shoulders, his thumbs rubbing her back. She was so beautiful, inside and out. The constant and realistic worry of something happening to her was driving him crazy.

"I'm afraid to let you leave the house," Finn told her quietly. "I'm so scared, Rachel. What if they finally get you?"

Rachel shook her head. "You were almost hit too, Finn," she told him.

"Only because I put myself in their path," he told her. "It was you, Rach. They're after you."

"I know," she said in a small voice. "I'm scared," she admitted.

"Me too."

After they'd washed, they stepped out of the shower. "I just can't believe what's happening," Rachel said as they dried off. She watched him pull on jeans, leaving the top button undone and not bothering with a shirt. Automatically thinking about how hot her boyfriend is probably meant that she was a terrible person. Now was really not the time to be thinking about these things.

Finn put his hands on the sink with his head down. "What's wrong?" she asked him, standing behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist. They stood like that for a moment, each just happy to have the other one close.

"I need to talk to you about something," he told her.

Rachel felt a tug of anxiety in her stomach. "What?" she asked, pulling away from him.

"Let's go downstairs," he told her.

Rachel followed him. "What is it?" she asked as she sat on his bed.

Finn sat beside her, absently rubbing her arm. "When I was talking to the police today, they told me that they'd like to set a trap to catch the guys doing this."

"That sounds like a good idea," Rachel told him.

Finn shook his head. "They wanted to use you as bait, Rach."

"Oh," Rachel said, shocked. She looked at him. "Wouldn't that work?"

"It might," he admitted. "Or it might just get you hurt. I'm not letting them use you as bait, Rachel." She started to say something and he shook his head. "Your dads would never go for it either."

"I'm sure that if the police are involved, it would be safe," she told him.

"I don't want to risk it," he told her.

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest. "Shouldn't it be my decision?"

"No," Finn said simply.

"Finn," Rachel said lowly, angry. "My friends are being hurt. If there's something I can do to stop it, I should do it."

"They're not being hurt because of you, Rachel!" he told her, frustrated. "They're being hurt because of me! This is all _my _fault." He jumped up, breathing hard. "I'll be damned if I let the police put you in danger, _again_, because of something I've done."

Rachel rose on her knees and pointed her finger at him. "Don't you give me that crap, Finn Hudson! Don't you dare! None of this is your fault, do you hear me?"

"Why do they want you so badly, Rach?" Finn asked forcefully. "Why are they after any of us?"

"Because they're insane!" she yelled at him. "Do any of these actions remind you of something a sane person would do?"

"You're right," he told her. "They _are_ insane. Which is exactly why _you're not doing it_!"

"You're not my dad, Finn!"

"You want to know who I am?" he asked, grabbing her arms and staring into her eyes. "I am the man that would give my own life to save yours. I'm the man that can't stand to think about anything happening to you. I'm the man that almost killed someone for hurting you. And I'm the man that would do it again. I'm the man that loves you, Rachel, and I'm not letting you do it."

Rachel felt tears well up in her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by clapping.

"This is the most romantic thing I've ever seen," Kurt said from the bottom of the stairs. He looked at Blaine. "Couldn't you just die?"

Blaine looked embarrassed. "Sorry," he told Rachel and Finn. "We heard you yelling and didn't know what was going on."

Rachel wiped the tears away from her face and wrapped her arms around Finn. "I'm sorry," she told him.

Finn sighed, pulling her back so he could put his forehead against her. "Don't ask me to be okay with the idea of you being in danger, Rachel," he told her softly. "I can't be."

Rachel nodded. "I know," she told him. She did understand; she'd feel the exact same way if it was him. But this needed to stop. Things were getting ridiculous, and their friends were getting hurt. She looked over at Blaine and Kurt. "Have you guys talked to Mercedes?"

Kurt nodded. "She's still really shaken. The others are at her house and safe. They have a cop sitting outside, too."

"What about Mike and Tina?" Rachel asked Finn.

"They were working on it," Finn told her. "They're spread pretty thin."

"I talked to them," Kurt said. "They said they're fine." He shrugged. "Let's just pray that it's true."

"How are you guys?" Finn asked them, still holding Rachel.

Blaine shrugged. "Terrified?"

Kurt nodded. "That about sums it up."

"Us too," Rachel told them.

"Well goody, we can all be terrified together," Kurt said, smiling at them.

"I'd rather not be terrified at all, thanks," Finn told him, making a face.

"Well, what are you going to do?" Kurt asked rhetorically.

Rachel let go of Finn and walked over to see the movies Blaine had brought from his house. Finn watched her but was thinking…What _was _he going to do?


	15. Chapter 15

After what seemed like an incredibly long night- Finn liked Rachel's dads, but them paired with Burt, Carol, Kurt AND Blaine was a little too much- he was more than happy to notice Rachel's eye lids seemingly growing heavier and heavier. "It's been a long day," Finn said to the room at large. "I think I'm going to turn in."

Rachel nodded, standing up as he did. "Me too." She kissed Hiram on the cheek and smiled at Leroy. "Love you daddies."

"Sleep well," Carol told them.

Rachel sluggishly followed him through the kitchen and towards his bedroom door. Finn looked back at her, smiling at how sweet she looked. He bent to lift her and she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, smiling into his neck. Carrying her down the stairs, he laid her gently on the bed. "Are you going to call and check on Noah again?" she asked him.

Finn nodded, reaching for his cell phone. He and Rachel had probably driven Quinn crazy, but they were desperate for any news (preferably good) about their friend. "Hey, Quinn? Any change?"

"No," Quinn told him, sighing. "Nothing."

"Rach and I are going to lie down for a while, get a little sleep. Are you good there?"

"Yeah, I'm okay."

Not sure what else to say, Finn said, "Just call us if you need us."

"I will," she told him. "Take care of Rachel."

"I will," Finn said, looking over at her.

"Any change?" Rachel asked when he'd hung up.

"No," Finn said sadly. "No change."

"How does Quinn sound?"

Finn looked at her, confused. "Like Quinn."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Does she sound upset?"

"Doesn't Quinn always sound upset?"

"Finn," Rachel groaned. "You know what I mean."

"She sounds tired. Like the rest of us."

Rachel nodded. "Let me see your phone. I want to send Mercedes and Tina a text to make sure they're okay."

Finn handed it to her. While she was texting he pulled his shirt over his head, then looked at it. "Shit," he mumbled, pulling it back on.

"Why'd you do that?" she asked him.

"Your dads might come down to check on us while we're sleeping," he told her.

Rachel giggled. "And you think that if you have your shirt off it will imply that we'd…had relations?"

Finn grinned crookedly at her. "Had relations? Really?"

"Hush," Rachel told him. "I'm sleepy." His phone vibrated and she looked down at it. Finn stood there for a moment, unsure what to do. "Take it off," Rachel said, reading the message. "I like to feel your skin against mine."

Finn really didn't need to be told twice. He pulled his shirt off and got into bed beside her. "Who is that?"

"Mercedes. She said that they're all fine."

"No word from Tina?"

Rachel shook her head as the phone vibrated in her hand. "Oh." She read the message, putting her hand over her mouth in shock.

"What is it?" Finn asked worriedly, sitting up.

"Apparently they were…uh…"

Finn lay back down, smiling. "Having relations?"

"Exactly," Rachel said, laughing.

Finn pulled her close, putting the phone on his night table. He turned the light off, leaving the room bathed in the glow of his night light. Rachel had laughed at his night light before, secretly thinking it was adorable. Now she realized how incredibly dark the basement bedroom could get at night and was glad he had it.

"I love you," he said against her forehead.

"I love you too," she told him. She was asleep almost as soon as her eyes closed. Finn watched her sleep, as had become his custom. Country music drifted down the stairs and Finn smiled. He'd never really cared for country music until moving in with Burt. There were times that a country song could say what he was feeling better than he could. He listened for a moment, his smile widening when he realized it was Tim McGraw's "She's My Kind of Rain." Looking down at Rachel, he sang softly with the radio:

"She's the sun set shadows  
>She's like Rembrandt's light<br>She's the history that's made at night  
>She's my lost companion<br>She's my dreaming tree  
>Together in this brief eternity<br>Summer days, winter snows  
>She's all things to behold<br>She's my kind of rain  
>Like love from a drunken sky<br>Confetti falling down all night  
>She's my kind of rain<br>So I wait  
>And I try<br>I confess all my crimes."

Rachel smiled in her sleep and moved closer to him, putting her hand over his heart. Putting his hand over hers, Finn was finally able to fall asleep.

Rachel woke up when his cell phone rang, but Finn didn't move. Crawling over him, she was careful not to wake him. "Hello?" she said into the phone.

"Rachel," Quinn sobbed into the phone, "you guys need to come here."

"Quinn?" Rachel said, fear flooding her body. "What's happened? Is it Noah?"

Finn cracked an eye open to look at her. "What's happening?" he asked sleepily.

"Can you guys come?" Quinn asked shrilly. "Please come."

"Quinn," Rachel said more forcefully. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, they won't let me back there!" the other girl cried. "He stopped breathing." Sobs wracked Quinn's body and she couldn't breathe to say anything more for a moment. "I don't know if he's still alive."

Rachel jumped up out of bed, her entire body numb. "We're coming, okay? We'll be there in a few minutes."

"Hurry," Quinn begged her. "Please hurry."

Finn had already gotten jeans on when Rachel hung up the phone. "He's not breathing," Rachel told Finn, her voice thick with tears.

Finn closed his eyes tightly. "Get dressed. I'll go tell everyone what's going on," he told her.

Rachel quickly threw on a dress, pulling her hair up in a ponytail as she ran up the stairs. Finn and his parents were in the kitchen talking. "Are we leaving?" she asked him.

Finn nodded. "We're going to talk to the officer outside and see if he'll follow us."

"But that will leave the house unprotected," Rachel protested.

"We can take care of it," Burt said. "You kids get to the hospital."

Rachel hugged him, then followed Finn out of the house. Finn quickly explained what was going on to the officer and they were soon on the road with the officer following them. Finn drove faster than the speed limit, but he figured the officer would understand.

Running into the hospital, they found Quinn outside the ICU waiting room. She was still sobbing. Rachel ran to her, hugging her. "What's happening?" Finn asked her.

Quinn shook her head. "No one has told me anything," she said. "I don't know if he's okay."

"Did he just stop breathing?" Rachel asked her, tears flowing freely down her face.

"He woke up," Quinn told them haltingly between sobs. "He didn't know where he was or what was going on. He kept screaming for you," she said, looking at Rachel. "He fought off all the nurses and when the doctor came in he said that Puck couldn't keep struggling like he was; he was hurting himself. So they decided to sedate him." She took a deep breath. "But it didn't work like it was supposed to. He stopped breathing." She looked at Rachel. "He just stopped breathing. His heart just stopped beating. _Noah_."

Rachel looked at Finn. He turned away from them, clenching his fists, fighting tears. "The doctors haven't been back out since?" she asked Quinn. Quinn shook her head. "Let's sit down, okay? We should all just sit down." She looked over at Finn. "Finn?"

Finn nodded and sat with them, holding Rachel's hand. They waited for good news…they were afraid of bad news. Finally the doctor came into the waiting room and found them. "You're here for Noah Puckerman?" he asked them tiredly.

"Yes," Finn said, jumping up. "Is he okay?"

"He's alive," the doctor told them. "We're air lifting him to the Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati."

Quinn gasped. "Why?"

"Mr. Puckerman is in very serious condition and we are simply not equipped to deal with it here. At the Good Samaritan, he'll have a much better chance of making a full recovery."

"Is he already gone?" Rachel asked.

"The helicopter is flying in now." He looked at the kids. "Do any of you know where his parents are?"

"His mother was out of town and unable to get a flight back until the morning," Finn told the doctor.

"Can I go with him?" Quinn asked suddenly. "Please? He doesn't have anyone else."

"Are you related to him?" the doctor asked her.

"He's the father of my baby girl," Quinn told him truthfully.

The doctor nodded. "You need to come with me."

Quinn looked at Rachel and Finn. "I have to go," she told them. "He can't be alone."

Finn nodded, hugging her. "Watch over him."

Rachel hugged her too. "Call us, okay?"

Quinn wiped her face. "I will. I have to go grab my stuff. Will you guys be okay?"

"We're fine," Finn told her. "We have a police escort."

They watched her walk away, Rachel turning to Finn and pulling him close. Finn held her as she cried. She'd held it together for Quinn, but he knew how much she was hurting. He felt the same way. Puck was one of the most alive people he'd ever known. To imagine him as anything but was almost impossible. He sank back into his chair, pulling Rachel with him. He rocked her gently as she cried, unaware of the fact that he was crying as well.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take," Rachel said after she'd calmed down a bit.

"I know baby," Finn said, rubbing her back. "I know."

"We didn't even do anything," she said. "We weren't even in the wrong. _Nothing _we've done was wrong!"

"Rach, calm down," Finn said soothingly. "It's going to be okay."

"I don't think it is," she said quietly. "I don't see how it can be."

They sat like that for at least twenty more minutes; it took that long for Rachel to finally stop crying. She excused herself to go to the bathroom, so Finn sent out a quick text letting their friends know what had happened…then he called his mom. "Finn?" she said as he picked up.

"Mama," he said, leaning against the wall and putting his head on his arm.

"Is he okay?"

"They're flying him out. Quinn is going to go with him so he isn't alone."

"Are you okay, baby?"

"No," he told her honestly. "I'm not. And neither is Rachel."

"You guys hurry back here. I'll fix you some hot chocolate."

Finn smiled. Carol thought hot chocolate fixed everything. He hoped she was right about that this time. "Okay. I love you."

He hung up and waited for Rachel. Their friends texted him back, upset about Puck. Mercedes asked if they should come to the hospital and Finn sent her a text telling her there was no reason they should. He paced the hallway, wondering where Rachel was. Finally, he walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door. "Rach?" he said. He opened the door a little. "Rachel?" Not getting an answer, he opened the door fully, looking into the bathroom. She was standing in front of the mirror with her head down, crying. He moved into the bathroom, pulling her away from the sink and into a hug. "Baby, what's wrong?"

"I'm scared," she told him. "I'm just scared, Finn."

His heart still racing, he nodded. They all were. "Let's get out of here."

Rachel took a deep breath and pulled away from him, taking his hand. They found the police officer that was guarding them at the front of the hospital and told him they were ready to leave. Driving through the small town of Lima, Finn found it hard to believe that so many bad things could be happening in a place so pretty.

They got back to Finn's house without incident and had hot chocolate with his mom. It did help a little. Finn felt like everything was moving in a blur. He wasn't even sure what they'd talked about in the kitchen. Carol told them just to leave their cups in the sink when she went up to bed. After they'd both sat staring into their hot chocolate cups for ten minutes, Finn got up and put them in the sink. He took Rachel's hand and pulled her towards his bedroom. She shut the door behind them, following him down the stairs.

Finn pulled his shirt off, stepping out of his jeans. He reached for his pajama pants but Rachel took his hand, stopping him from reaching them. He looked at her. "Rach?"

Rachel stepped back and pulled the dress she was wearing over her head, then removed her underwear as well. Realizing what she wanted, Finn wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her to him, skin to skin. He lowered his head and his lips captured hers.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, Rachel wrapped her legs around his waist. Finn's hands cupped her butt, pressing her against him. She moaned into his mouth and he cut the sound off by deepening the kiss. Wrapping his hand in her hair he used it to pull her head back. He trailed kisses down her neck, lifting her higher with his other arm so his mouth was on her breasts. "Now, Finn," she moaned in his ear.

Finn's mouth caught hers again as he pushed his underwear down, then lowered her onto him. She was ready, and he groaned as he slid inside her. She moved, clenching around him. Finn held her onto him, both remaining still for a moment. No matter what else was going on in the world, this was perfect. This was real.

Rachel cried, putting her head over on his shoulder. Nothing in her life had ever felt so right. Her entire life was falling apart; Finn was the one thing she could count on. She gasped as he moved, wrapping her legs tighter around him, taking him deeper into her.

"Ready?" he asked her hoarsely.

Rachel looked at him, biting her lip and nodded. Finn walked over to the bed, lowering her onto it. He pulled out of her, watching her face and he thrust back into her. "I love you," he whispered.

Rachel nodded, unable to say anything. She reached for him, pulling him down so that their chests were pressed together. Finn's hand reached between them, rubbing her. Rachel covered her mouth with her hand, trying to keep from crying out. Closing her eyes, she moved under him, moving closer and closer to the edge.

"Come with me, Rachel," Finn said in her ear and she felt the waves of heat pooling in her stomach move throughout her body. She screamed but Finn's mouth covered hers, swallowing the noise.

Finn moved to the side of her brushing the hair out of her face. "Why are you crying, baby?" he asked her, kissing her softly.

"I love you so much," she said, sobbing into his neck. "I don't ever want us to end."

"We're not going to," he told her.

"What if we don't make it?" she said, looking up at him. "What if they win? They want to kill us Finn."

"We'll make it," he told her. "I promise, Rachel. We'll make it."

"What about Noah?"

"He'll make it too."

Wiping her face, she looked at him. "Promise?"

Finn nodded. "Promise."


	16. Chapter 16

If this were a movie, Finn and Rachel would have woken up to find that the bad guys had been caught by superhero cops, Puck would walk through the door with barely a limp, and the Glee Club would meet in the middle of Main Street to bust out in a victory song.

But this isn't a movie, even though what happened the next night seemed straight out of a horror flick.

Rachel and Finn- having been up all night worrying about Puck- slept most of the day away. Her dads had gone back to their house with the promise that they would return around dark. Blaine had to go to work at the mall and Kurt went with him; he didn't know that he could do anything to help protect him (or vice versa), but neither really wanted to be alone. Burt went to work but Carol called in- even with police protection, she didn't want to leave Finn and Rachel alone in the house. She'd thought several times about waking them up, but eventually decided that with as much as they'd been through they needed the rest.

Rachel stretched out in the bed, moaning. "Stop making that noise," Finn told her, smiling and pulling her close to him for a kiss.

"I can't help it," she told him, smiling back. "What time is it?"

Finn reached for his cell phone and pushed a button. "Five."

Rachel's head shot up. "Five o'clock in the afternoon?"

Finn nodded. "Yup."

Rachel jumped out of the bed. "Oh my gosh, what must your mother think of me? Lying around in bed with her son all day…"

Finn reached out and hooked his arm around her waist as she turned to walk away, pulling her back on the bed and against him. He wrapped his arm around her. "She probably thinks that we deserve some rest," he told her, kissing her neck. "And I agree with her." Rachel sighed, but moved closer to him. "Did you have any bad dreams last night?"

Rachel thought about it. "I don't think so. I think I've been too exhausted to dream." She reached for Finn's phone and went through his text messages. "Quinn said that Noah is stable," she told Finn, texting the girl back. "Kurt and Blaine are at the mall. Is that a good idea?" she asked, then continued before he said anything. "Sam is still over at Mercedes, but everyone is has gone home."

"I hope they're being careful," Finn said, sighing.

Rachel turned in his arms to look at him. "We're not leaving the house today, are we?"

Finn smiled crookedly at her, squeezing her gently in his arms. "You have anywhere else you'd rather be?"

"No," Rachel admitted. "I haven't gone to any of my dance lessons or my singing lessons in a week. I haven't been to the gym in a week. I haven't really been home in days." She shrugged. "I'm fine with all of that."

"I'm fine with all of that too." He released Rachel. "You're right, though. We should go up. I'm starving."

They got dressed quickly and walked up the steps. "Mom?" Finn called, walking over to the fridge and looking through it.

"Hey," Carol said, smiling. "You two finally decided to join the land of the living?"

"Is that what we're calling it?" Finn asked.

Carol hugged Rachel. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling a little better. The sleep helped."

"I talked to Pucks mom a few minutes ago. He's out of ICU," Carol told them.

"Is she there?" Finn asked, raising his head out of the fridge.

Carol nodded. "She was able to find a flight into Cincinnati."

"Good," Finn said. "What's this big pot of stuff?"

"I made some vegetable soup," Carol said. She nodded to Rachel. "I know how much you love it."

Rachel smiled at her. "Thank you," she said sincerely. She loved that Carol was always doing little things like that for her. It warmed her heart.

"Wait…_vegetable_ soup? Where's the meat?" Finn said, frowning.

Carol laughed. "There's some chicken casserole in there too."

"I love you," Finn said, lowering his head again. He pulled out the pot of vegetable soup and the chicken casserole and put them on the counter. Opening the casserole, he looked at his mom.

"You can have all of it you want," Carol told him.

Finn grinned. "Rach, I'll fix your soup."

Rachel walked toward him. "I'll fix us both something to drink. Do you want anything Carol?"

Carol shook her head. "I'll be in the other room if you need me. The news is coming on in a few minutes."

Finn heated the food up and put a bowl of soup in front of Rachel. "What's going on in the news?" he asked her.

Carol sighed. "The factory is laying off over half of its workers and they're having some problems over there. Fights and stuff." She shook her head. "It's just awful."

Finn frowned. "I wonder if Puck's mom lost her job?"

"Probably," Carol said sadly.

"That's terrible," Rachel said.

"Things are bad all over, honey," Carol said, squeezing her shoulder. "You two eat, then come join me."

"Okay," Finn told her. He shook his head, looking at Rachel. "That's really going to hurt the town."

Rachel blew out a breath. "If things were bad around here before, imagine how bad they're going to be now."

They finished eating and joined Carol in the living room. "Have they said anything about the factory?" Finn asked her, sitting on the couch and putting his arm around Rachel.

"They keep showing video of police cars there but they haven't actually said what's going on," Carol told them. She looked at the clock. "I wish Burt didn't have to work late tonight."

"What time are Kurt and Blaine supposed to be home?" Rachel asked.

"Blaine gets off at 8, I think," Carol told her. "Your dads will be back around 8, too."

Rachel nodded. "Good."

A knock sounded at the door and Carol went to answer it. Rachel leaned her head on Finn's shoulder. "My mom loves you," he whispered in her ear.

Rachel smiled. "I don't know about love, but I do think she likes me."

"Totally loves you. When she looks at you, she's trying to figure out how many grandbabies you're going to give her."

"Oh my gosh, Finn!" Rachel said, laughing.

Finn shrugged. "It's true." He winked at her.

"Finn!" Carol called from the doorway.

Finn got up, walking to where his mother and the officer were. "What's going on?"

"Officer Carlton is needed at the factory," Carol told him. "Apparently things are getting worse there."

"I offered to escort you all to the police station for protection until I can return," the officer told him.

Finn frowned, looking at his mom. "I don't know if we need to do that," he said. "What do you think?"

"I think that you and Rachel should go. I'm going to stay here and wait for Burt and the boys."

Finn thought about it, running his hand through his hair. "I don't want to leave my mom," he told the police officer. "Maybe Rachel will go with you, though. Can you give me a second?"

Officer Carlton nodded and Finn walked back into the living room. "What's going on?" Rachel asked him.

"Officer Carlton has to leave," Finn told her. "Things at the factory are getting worse."

"Okay?" Rachel said, confused.

"He wants to take us to the police station until he's free to protect us again."

Rachel shrugged. "I can get my things," she said.

"Mom's not going," Finn said. "I don't want to leave her here." He walked over to Rachel and brushed her cheek with his thumb. "But I want you to go. If something happens here, I don't know that I can protect you. There are so many of them…"

Rachel stared at him for a moment, then went up on her toes to kiss him. "Tell him I'll be ready in a minute," she said.

Finn breathed out a sigh of relief, kissing her softly. "Thank you."

Rachel nodded, then went to grab her stuff. She met the three at the front door. "I guess I'm going with you," she told him, smiling. The officer nodded.

"Be careful with this young lady," Carol told him, hugging Rachel. "We love her."

Finn smiled knowingly at Rachel, then pulled her close for a kiss. "Be careful babe," he told her. "I love you."

"I will and I love you too," she whispered.

Rachel followed the officer out to the car. He opened the back door for her. "I feel like a criminal!" Rachel joked.

Officer Carlton blushed. "I'd let you up front, but my computer and radio is up there."

"I'm just joking," she told him. She turned around to wave at Finn as they drove off. "So things are getting bad at the factory?"

Officer Carlton nodded. "We were hoping to have the situation under control by now, but it's just getting worse. With situations like this, you just never know what's going to happen. People need their jobs, you know?"

Rachel nodded. "I can understand that," she said as they drove through town.

Passing the courthouse a frantic call came over the radio. "All units reporting. We have a 256 at the Mulligan's factory. We need all units."

Officer Carlton pulled the car over. "What's a 256?" Rachel asked him.

"Shots fired," he told her, picking up his radio. "Dispatch, this is 191. I'm on my way into the station now."

"191, all cars are needed at Mulligan's factory."

"I have a passenger," he said into the radio.

"191, signal 5."

"What's going on?" Rachel asked, worried.

"I've got to call them," he told her. "This is Carlton. I'm transporting the Berry girl to the station for safekeeping." He listened for a moment. "Who got shot?" He looked grim. "Is there any way…Okay," he said, hanging up. "I have to respond to the call. Several of our officers are being held hostage at the factory," he told Rachel, putting the car in gear and driving. "We have someone coming to pick you up. You'll be safe."

Rachel nodded, but she didn't feel safe at all. She was trying to stay away from danger and now the cop protecting her was driving her towards it. She closed her eyes and counted to ten, breathing deeply. No one at the factory wanted to hurt her, so she probably really was safe.

"I'm really sorry," Office Carlton told her, noticing her unease.

"No, it's okay," Rachel told him. "Your friends are in danger. I completely understand that."

"We don't have any type of protocol for this," he told her. "We're pretty much flying blind. Things like this just don't happen in Lima."

"Lately, lots of things have been happening around here that I can't believe," Rachel told him. He grimaced.

Pulling up to the factory, they both stared in shock at the scene before them. Vehicles were on fire; people were screaming and fighting everywhere. Several people lay on the ground, unmoving. Rachel covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh no," she whispered.

Carlton grabbed his radio. "Dispatch, this is 191. Things are much worse than we thought. We need backup. I repeat, we need backup!"

"All units, all units, report to Mulligan's factory," the radio said as Officer Carlton put the radio up. He looked back at Rachel. "I'm going to leave you here," he told her. "Don't open the door for anyone but another police officer, okay? We will get you out of here as soon as possible."

Rachel nodded, terrified. A factory worker chased another man down beside the car, hitting him with a steel pipe. Rachel screamed and Officer Carlton jumped out of the car, trying to restrain the attacker. Cuffing him, Rachel heard him again speak into his radio- this one on his shoulder- requesting backup and medical assistance. He nodded to Rachel and locked the doors, shutting them.

Rachel frantically dug through her bag, searching for her cell phone. Her hands were shaking so badly she dropped the bag. She rested her head back against the seat, taking deep breaths. She was okay. She was in a police car. She was fine. No one even knew she was there. Right?


	17. Chapter 17

Finn and Carol were washing dishes when the phone rang. "I'll get it honey," Carol said, drying her hands off on a dish towel. "It's probably Burt."

Finn continued to dry and put away the dishes she'd already washed. He knew it was kind of stupid or whatever, but he'd always liked helping his mom with the dishes. He knew that she liked doing them with him, too. He complained at times that Kurt never seemed to help, but he didn't really care.

"Calm down," Carol was saying into the phone, walking back into the kitchen. "Kurt, honey, calm down. What's happening?"

Finn put the plate he'd just dried away, turning around to watch Carol. "What's going on?" he asked.

Carol shook her head, listening to whatever Kurt was saying. "Are you hurt?" She listened for another moment. "How much blood is there?"

"Mom," Finn said again. "What's going on?"

Carol put the phone down. "He hung up. I don't know why." She looked shell shocked.

Finn walked to her, lowering her down in a chair. "Mom," he told her more forcefully. "I need to know what's going on."

"The fights have spread from the factory," she told him. "Kurt said that people are rioting in the mall."

"Rioting?" Finn said, confused. "That doesn't happen here."

"He said that Blaine was hit with a chair and has a cut on his arm," she told him. "They're hiding behind some clothes racks in the back of the store."

Finn straightened. "This is crazy." He looked at his mom. "I have to go help them."

Carol grabbed his arm. "You are not going into the mall when there's a riot," she told him shrilly.

"Mom, I have to help Kurt."

"Finn Hudson, you're not going!" Carol yelled.

Finn put his hands on his mom's shoulders, looking into her eyes. "You wanted me and Kurt to be brothers, right? What kind of brother would sit at home and do nothing when his brother was being attacked and scared?"

"The kind of brother whose mother won't let him go."

Finn straightened up. "What about Burt?" he asked, suddenly wondering why Kurt hadn't called his dad.

"Kurt said he can't get him on his phone," Carol said, then put her hand over her mouth. "Oh God, Finn, the shop is close to the mall! What if Burt's being attacked?"

"I can check on him," Finn told her.

Carol stood up. "I'm going too."

"No, mom, it's not safe."

Carol eyed him. "Don't you tell me what I can and can't do," she told him.

Finn sighed. "Let me run down to my room and grab a couple of things," he told her.

"Hurry, Finn," she said desperately. He nodded and ran down the steps. Getting in his room he found his baseball bag in the corner. He didn't have a gun and he didn't know Kung Fu…but he could swing a baseball bat. He just hoped he wouldn't have to.

Getting back upstairs, he found his mom at the door waiting for him. "I can't get Burt," she said. "Kurt called back and said that fires have been set all over the mall."

Finn shook his head, putting his bag into the truck and getting in. "We'll go by Burt's first since it's closer," he told her.

Carol nodded, closing her eyes. "I can't believe this is happening."

Finn didn't say anything; this had become the norm for him. He sent up a silent prayer that Burt, Kurt and Blaine would be okay. He cared about all of them more than he'd realized.

As they drove towards town, they saw smoke in the distance. "Oh my God," Carol said again. Getting closer to town, they passed several vehicles that honked their horns and flashed their lights in warning. Finn felt his gut tighten. Things must be bad.

When they got to the city limits they could see buildings burning. People were running everywhere. Police cars were sitting in the middle of roads with no one in them. "What is going on?" Finn whispered.

A man stepped in front of Finn's truck and he slammed on his brakes. The man threw a large rock at the windshield, cracking it. Carol screamed and Finn put his arms around her. "Are you crazy?" Finn screamed at the man, but he was already gone.

Carol began crying. "Get us to Burt's, Finn," she said.

Finn started driving again, swerving through the parked cars and dodging people. He turned down the road Burt's shop was on and noticed the fire immediately. "Oh shit," he said, speeding up.

"No," Carol yelled, jumping out of the truck as soon as it stopped and running towards the building. A girl Finn knew from high school walked by, her face bloody, crying. Finn walked towards her, but she ran away from him screaming.

"Finn!" Carol screamed. "Help me!" Things had been piled in front of Burt's shop to prevent the doors from opening. "Help me!"

Finn ran over to her and moved her out of the way, pulling things from the front of the door. Black smoke rolled out of the top of the building. He cleared the door enough so that he could open it. "Burt!" he yelled into the shop.

"In here!" Burt yelled from the back. Finn and Carol ran into the shop, covering their faces so they didn't breathe in smoke. Finn found Burt on the floor in his office. "Can't…breathe…" the man said, coughing.

Finn picked him up and ran towards the front of the shop, sitting Burt down beside his truck. Carol, who had been right behind him, leaned down over her husband. Finn looked around the street in disbelief. How had this even happened? "Finn, you're on fire!" Carol yelled at him.

Finn looked down and realized that flames were moving up his pant leg. "Shit," he said, shaking his leg. He beat at the flames with his hands, not sure what to do. Dropping to the ground, he rolled around, stopping when he realized the flames were out. Huh. Stop, Drop and Roll really did work. "Is Burt okay?" he asked him mom.

"I'm right here," the man said. "I think I'm okay. Little smoke in my lungs, maybe." He looked up at his shop. "Son of a bitch," he moaned.

"We've got to get to Kurt and Blaine," Finn told the couple.

"Where are they?" Burt asked. "What's wrong?"

"They're trapped in the mall," Carol told him.

Burt stood up unsteadily. "Let's go get them."

Finn nodded and jumped back into his truck. "I'm so glad that Rachel went with Officer Carlton," Finn said.

Carol fussed over Burt as Finn moved his truck towards the mall. People were fighting all over the town. Finn stopped his truck in the road and jumped out when he saw two little boys huddled together in an alleyway. "Hey," he said softly, bending down. They were both crying and clearly brothers. Their cheeks were black with tear trails running down them. Finn's heart twisted in his chest when he saw how scared they were.

The older one- Finn figured he was about 6- stepped forward. "Please don't hurt my brother, mister."

Finn shook his head. Outside of the alley, people were screaming and chasing each other. "I won't. I'm on my way to help out my brother," he told the little boys. "He's in the mall and he's scared of what's going on."

The older boy nodded. "Mikey's scared too," he told Finn. "I've been protecting him."

"You're doing a good job," Finn told the boy. "My Mom and Dad are in my truck," he told them. "Do you know where your Mom and Dad are?"

The smaller boy started crying and the oldest boys chin quivered. "Someone hurt our Mommy," he told Finn. "She told us to run and we did." He wiped his face, trying to be brave. "We should have stayed and helped her."

Finn put his head down, trying to regain his composure. "Would you like it if I helped you find your Mommy?" The boy nodded and Finn held out his hands. The boys took them and walked as closely to Finn as they could to his truck. He opened the door and put them in the truck. "This is my Mom and Dad. Is it okay if you sit in their laps while we look for your Mommy?"

The smaller boy, Mikey, buried his face in Finn's shirt. "Mikey's scared," the other boy said.

Finn nodded. "What's your name?" he asked him.

"I'm Jeremy."

"Jeremy, can you sit with my Mom? I'm going to let Mikey sit with me." Jeremy nodded. Finn sat behind the wheel and let Mikey sit on his left side, by the window. He prayed that no one else threw a rock towards his truck; he was afraid the little boy would be hit. "Mom, Burt, this is Jeremy and Mikey. We're going to help them look for their Mommy."

"Hello, boys," Carol said, smiling warmly at them.

"What does your Mommy look like?" Burt asked them.

"She's got yellow hair," Jeremy said.

"What was she wearing?" Burt asked the boy.

"She had on her blue dress," Jeremy said. "She likes it because it makes her eyes look pretty." Jeremy looked at Burt. "She's got really pretty eyes. My daddy always says so."

Looking into the deep blue eyes of the little boy, Burt nodded. "I bet she does," he told Jeremy. "What's your Mommy's name?"

"Mommy," Mikey said.

Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Mikey's 3 and he ain't got no sense sometimes." Mikey stuck his lower lip out. "Mommy's name is Angie. Daddy calls her Angel."

Finn nodded. "Let's find her," he said. "Do you remember where you were when you saw her last?"

Jeremy ducked his head. "We was at the shoe store," he said. "I was mad because she wouldn't get me some Spiderman shoes." He looked at Finn. "I don't even want 'em anymore, I promise."

Finn cleared his throat and nodded. "We'll find her."

He drove to McGuffey's Shoe Store, figuring it was the one the boys had been talking about. "Mikey, I'm going to go in and see if your Mom's in there, okay? Will you sit out here with your brother and my Mom and Dad?" Mikey nodded and Finn moved him over to Burt's lap. Reaching down under his seat for a bat, he looked at Burt and Carol. "Lock the doors and don't open them until I get back, okay?" Carol nodded. Finn tousled Jeremy's hair. "I'll be right back, kiddo."

Getting out of the truck, he scanned the street looking for anyone that matched the boy's description. Not finding anyone, he walked to the store. The front windows had been busted out and glass littered the floor. Walking in, he found shoes thrown everywhere. He moved to the counter, finding a store clerk behind it. "Are you okay?" Finn asked, moving towards the man.

"Got a broken arm," the man said, his breathing hard. "Fool kid hit me with a bat."

"I have a bat, but I'm not going to hit you," Finn told him. "Can you move?"

"Probably," the man told him.

"I found two little boys," Finn told him. "They said that their mom was in here. She's blonde with blue eyes. The oldest said her name is Angie."

The man nodded. "She was in here when I was attacked. I don't know what happened to her."

Finn stood up. "I'm going to look around for her," he told the man. "I'll be back."

He moved through the store carefully, prepared to hit someone if he had too. By the kids shoes he found Angie, unconscious on the floor. Her face was bloody and Finn wondered if someone had hit her in the face with a bat. "Angie?" he said gently, touching her. "Angie?"

The woman opened her eyes quickly, wincing. "My boys," she said quietly. "Where are my boys?"

"I've got them," Finn told her. "They're okay, they're in my truck. They were worried about you."

The woman sat up, holding a hand to her head. "That man hit me," she told Finn, shaking her head gently. "He chased me around and hit me in the head with a baseball bat." She looked at Finn. "What in the world is going on?"

"I'm not sure, but the whole town is on fire," he told her. "Can you stand?"

She nodded, taking the hand he offered her. "I need to see my boys," she told him.

"My truck is right outside," Finn told her. "I have to help the store clerk out of here."

"I'll wait for you," she said, a tremor of fear in her voice.

Finn nodded, then walked back over to the man. Finn helped the man up, mindful of his broken arm. They walked out of the store and onto the street. "Oh my heavens," the man said.

All of the buildings on the other side of the street were now on fire. A woman stood in the middle of the road and screamed. Teenagers ran around them, throwing rocks and bricks into the glass fronts of the buildings; some were pulling merchandise out. "Let's get to my truck," Finn said.

"Mommy!" Jeremy said when they got close. He unlocked the door and ran to her.

"Gentle, baby," the woman said, hugging him. Mickey ran to her, too, and she picked him up. "Thank you so much for looking out for my boys," she told Finn. She looked behind them. "That's my car. I need to get to the hospital."

"Are you sure?" Finn asked her. "You were unconscious."

"I'll drive her," the store clerk said, "if she doesn't mind."

The woman looked at him gratefully. "That would be fantastic."

Finn walked with them to the car, looking at the little boys. "You guys take care of your mom, okay?" he said to them.

"We will," Jeremy told him.

"Come to a football game this year," Finn said. "I'll try to win a game for you."

"You're a football player?" Jeremy asked.

Finn nodded. "I'm the quarterback," he told the little boy.

"Woah," Jeremy breathed, in awe.

"Be careful, please," Finn told Angie.

The woman hugged him tightly. "Thank you so much," she said, a tear falling down her face. She got into the car beside the clerk and waved. Finn nodded, watching them drive back the other way.

He got back into the truck with Carol and Burt. "Kurt's on the phone," Carol told him. "He and Blaine have made it to the bottom floor but they can't find a way out."

Finn nodded, putting his truck into drive. "Then we'll have to find a way in."


	18. Chapter 18

Rachel was in the floorboard of the police car. She'd watched a truck full of hockey and football players pull into the parking lot and didn't want them to see her. She knew many of their parents were probably involved in the riot taking place, but she'd prayed that none of them would show up. She found her bag and dumped its contents into the seat, searching for her cell phone. She needed to talk to Finn, even if there was nothing he could do.

Finding the phone, she dialed his number. No answer. She didn't leave a voicemail because she honestly didn't know what to say. She rose up and glanced out of the side window. Things were getting worse. More cars were on fire, more people on the ground. She was pretty sure she could hear gun shots in the plant. She tried calling her house but got the answering machine. "Why won't anyone answer the phone?" she said out loud.

Dialing Kurt, she closed her eyes. "Rachel," Kurt whispered into the phone, "I can't really talk right now. I think I'm going to die."

"What are you talking about?' she asked him, whispering as well.

"Blaine and I are trapped in the mall and there's fire everywhere," he told her, coughing softly.

"Oh no, Kurt, are you guys okay?"

"Blaine's arm is hurt, but so far that's it," Kurt told her.

"I'm scared, Kurt," Rachel told him, looking up and out the window again.

"That's sweet Rach, but we're going to be okay."

"No, I mean, I'm scared for me," Rachel told him, unable to stop the small smile his words brought.

"I thought you were at the police station?"

"No, the police officer brought me to the factory. Things are bad here," she told him.

"Why would he do that?" Kurt said furiously. "Are you in the factory?"

Rachel shook her head though he couldn't see it. "No, I'm trapped in the back of the car," she told him. She took a deep breath. "So many other cars are on fire," she said, her voice trembling. "What if this car is next?"

"He left you _trapped in a police car_?" Kurt scream whispered incredulously. "What was he thinking?"

"He's young and his friends were being shot at," Rachel snapped. "He was scared."

"It's nice of you to take up for him, Little Diva, but he's put you in danger. He left you in the back of a police car, for Christ's sake."

"I know," Rachel said. "I don't know what to do. And Finn isn't answering his cell phone," she said miserably.

"He's with Dad and Carol," Kurt told her. "They're on their way here."

"Oh," Rachel said, her throat working. She wanted Finn to come rescue _her_. Shadows moved around the car. "I'll call you back," she whispered, ending the call. She made herself as small as she could, praying no one looked in the windows and found her.

"What did she say?" Blaine asked Kurt.

"She said she'd call me back," Kurt told him, staring at his phone. "She sounds really scared."

"I can't believe he left her in a police car," Blaine said.

"How did you hear that?"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "You said it, twice."

"Oh, yeah." Kurt and Blaine had moved to the front of the mall. The fires weren't as bad here, but the smoke was still pretty thick. "I don't like this," he told his boyfriend. "I'm scared."

"We're going to be okay," Blaine told him. He looked around. "We need to try to get out of here."

"And go where?" Kurt asked. "Those idiots have the exits blocked."

"If we stay in here we're in trouble," Blaine told him. "We've got to risk it."

Kurt took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Let me call Dad and tell them what we're doing."

Finn got closer to the mall and pulled out his phone. He wanted to check on Rachel. He saw that she'd called him and quickly called her back. It went straight to voicemail. "Crap," he muttered, closing his phone.

Burt's phone rang and he answered it. "You're going to do what?" he said. "Where are you?" He paused, listening. "We're here, okay?" He nodded. "We'll be there."

"What did he say?" Finn asked when he'd hung up.

"They're going to try to get out of the door closest to the Footlocker," Burt told him.

"Then we'll go to that door and help them," Finn said, driving in that direction.

Finn parked on the sidewalk in front of the door in question. "Mom, you need to stay in the truck," he told Carol. She started to protest. "Someone might try to take it," he said, cutting her off. "You need to stay in so no one does."

"We'll be right back babe," Burt told her, kissing her.

"I love you both," Carol said, trying not to cry. "Be careful."

Finn grabbed his ball bag and pulled out another bat for Burt. Burt took it, nodding. They moved towards the door quickly, not sure what Kurt and Blaine were up against on the inside.

Blaine pulled the top of a wooden shelf off of the wall, handing it to Kurt. "You may need this," he told him.

"Blaine, I would never be able to hit anyone with this," Kurt told him, upset. "I just don't have it in me."

"Then you can hand it to me and I'll do it," Blaine told him. "We're getting out of here, Kurt."

Kurt swallowed, nodding. "Okay."

"Let's go."

The two boys walked out of the clothing store they were in, surprised at the number of people still running around. Men and women were running into stores and grabbing clothes, shoes, books, etc. Even more people were destroying everything they came into contact with. A few people darted in and out of the shadows, looking terrified. Kurt figured that he and Blaine had the same look on their faces.

They walked by a trash can that was on fire and the heat from it startled Kurt. He jerked away quickly, causing him to stumble. "Hey!" someone shouted behind them.

"Run Kurt!" Blaine yelled at him, pushing him forward. Kurt ran toward the door, knowing that once he got there he'd still have to move the mountain of stuff in the way before they could get out.

He looked back to say something to Blaine but didn't find him. Stopping, Kurt turned around to see Blaine being attacked by two boys from their high school. He was on the ground, the other boys stomping on him.

Rage ran through Kurt's body, unlike anything he'd ever known. "Get away from him!" he yelled, running back towards them. Holding the board with both hands, he swung it towards the first bully, hitting him in the back as hard as he could. The boy fell down, screaming.

The second bully looked up at Kurt, sneering. "Hit me, fag," he said, a smile on his face. "Do it."

Kurt swung the board but the bully dodged it, grabbing it and pulling. Kurt staggered forward, not letting go. Seeing that Kurt had a firm hold on the board, the bully pushed it backward, slamming it into Kurt's chest. Kurt dropped to his knees, the breath knocked out of him. Blaine shot up from the ground with a hit to the guys balls, dropping him. Taking the board from him, he hit him in the shoulder.

"Blaine, let's go," Kurt said to the boy as he continued to hit the kid on the ground. "Let's get out of here."

Blaine nodded, breathing hard. "Thanks, Kurt," he said, pulling him in for a hard kiss.

"Well if I'd known I'd get a kiss like that," Kurt mumbled, following his boyfriend to the door.

They began pulling things from the front of the door, finally seeing light. Kurt kept looking behind them, expecting another threat to show up at any moment. "Kurt!" he heard his Dad call.

"Dad?" Kurt said. "Dad!" He began pulling harder at the wooden bench that had been overturned against the door. "We're here!"

He never saw the blow to his head coming. One moment he was pulling on the bench, the next he was lying on the ground staring up at the mall's ceiling. "Burt!" Blaine yelled, struggling with the two bullies they'd just fought off. "Finn, help!"

Finn and Burt heard Blaine's frantic shout and started working harder to get in. A large man tackled Burt from the side, knocking him down. "Get off of him!" Finn yelled, moving away from the door.

"Help Kurt!" Burt said, fighting the man off.

Finn stared at him for a second, then renewed his efforts on getting the door cleared. He glanced over to see Burt hit the man with one of the baseball bats they'd left propped against the side of the mall. Looking back at the door, he could see through enough to see Blaine fighting two guys. He didn't see Kurt at all. "Shit," he said, pushing on a large wooden bench that was in his way.

"Don't drop that!" Blaine screamed through the door. "You'll hit Kurt!"

"Damn," Finn said, looking at Burt.

"Let's push it out of the way," Burt said.

Finn nodded in agreement, though he wasn't sure that was a good idea. They didn't know where Kurt was; they could inadvertently push it over onto him. "One, two, three," Burt said, and together they pushed the bench. It barely moved. "One, two three," Burt said again, refusing to give up. The bench moved a little more. "Now let's push it to the side," Burt said after they got it moved out of the doorway.

Pushing together, they were able to move the bench enough that they could get through the door. Burt charged in, grabbing the boy closest to him. Finn ran back and grabbed the bats, then moved into the mall. "Get back!" he shouted, holding one of the bats up, ready to swing. "Get back or I'll knock your brains out."

The two boys moved back, glaring at Finn. "You'll get yours, Hudson," one of the boys said, spitting.

"Kurt!" Burt yelled, joining Blaine on the floor beside the boy.

"They hit him in the head," Blaine said.

Finn looked at the blood on his brother's head and felt sick. "Move," he said, bending down to pick the other boys up. "Burt, you and Blaine grab the baseball bats." He carried Kurt out of the mall, running for the truck.

"Put him in the back," Burt told him, lowering the tailgate.

"I'll ride back here with him," Blaine said. Finn nodded, sliding his brother gently into the truck. When Blaine jumped in, Finn shut the tailgate.

"I'm awake," Kurt said, trying to sit up.

"I knew it, you just wanted Finn to carry you," Blaine joked, tears falling down his face.

"My head hurts," Kurt said, wincing.

"We'll get you to a hospital," Burt said.

Kurt's phone rang. "That's Rachel's ringtone," Finn said. "Let me see your phone."

Kurt searched for the phone. "Finn, Rachel isn't at the police station," he told the other boy. "She's at the factory, trapped in a police car."

The entire world stopped. "What?"

He found the phone, handing it to Finn. "She tried to call you earlier. She's scared."

"We need to go get her," Blaine said.

Finn answered the phone. "Rach?"

"Finn!" Rachel said, her voice scared. "They're moving around the car!"

"Who is?" he asked her.

"I don't know," Rachel said, crying softly. "I can't hear what they're saying and I'm afraid to look."

"Don't move, Rachel," he told her. "I'm coming."

"Please come get me, Finn," she said. "I don't like this." Rachel saw large shadows cover the windows. What were they doing?

Finn was saying something but she wasn't listening. The car started rocking. Rachel gasped. What was this? Soon the car started bouncing. "Finn," she said into the phone, cutting off what ever he was saying, "I think they're trying to tip the car over!"

Finn jumped in his truck, motioning for the others to get in quickly. "Rach, let them know you're in there."

"No!" she whispered. "I don't want them to know I'm here!"

The fear in her voice broke his heart. "Rach, if they tip it over you could be hurt."

"If they know I'm in here they'll make sure I'm hurt," she said.

"What's going on?" Burt asked Blaine through the back truck window as Finn sped out of the mall parking lot. Blaine told him what was happening to Rachel.

The car bounced higher and higher, throwing Rachel against the car door. Crying harder, she didn't know what to do. With a collective push, the men outside the car managed to push it all the way over and it rolled onto its top. Rachel fell hard against the roof of the car, crying out as she hit her head.

"Did you hear that?" a man outside the car said. Several of them bent down and looked inside the car. "Well I'll be damned," one of them said, grinning. "That's Berry."

"Finn, they see me," Rachel said, though she didn't know where her phone was. The men rose, using their shoes to kick the back windows of the car out. "Leave me alone!" she screamed. "Get away from me!"

Finn tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "I'm coming Rachel!" he yelled into his phone. "I'm coming!"

A large boot busted through the glass, throwing pieces of it onto Rachel. "Stop!" she yelled at him. "Go away!"

Clearing the rest of the glass out of the window with his boot, the man leaned down and grinned at her. "Hey, Rachel, remember me?"

The blood drained from Rachel's face. Of all people to be at the factory, Josh Stevens was the one she most dreaded seeing. She'd known his dad worked at the factory, but she'd prayed he would be somewhere- anywhere- else. "Stay away from me," Rachel told him, moving as far away from him as possible. "Don't you come near me!"

"Now that ain't no way to be," the boy told her, smiling.

Finn recognized Josh's voice over the phone. "Don't you fucking touch her!" he screamed, almost hitting a parked car.

"Finn," Burt said, "you won't do her any good if you wreck before you get there."

Josh reached into the car, grabbing at Rachel's ankle. Rachel kicked his hand, jamming one of his fingers. "You bitch!" he yelled. "You'll pay for that." Getting on his knees, he crawled through the glass until he was partially in the car, grabbing at her with both hands.

Rachel screamed as loud as she could. She screamed and kicked at his hands, trying to stay as far away from him as possible. The boy clasped onto one of her ankles, using it to pull her closer to him. Rachel fought him, twisting and kicking, trying to yank her foot out of his grasp. "Bitch," the boys said again as she connected with his arm. He kept pulling, no matter what she did.

Rachel screamed more, praying that someone would hear her and come help. She couldn't let Josh take her. She grabbed the passenger seat armrest, determined to not let go. "Someone get me a knife," Josh yelled behind him. He looked back at Rachel and smiled. "Let's see if you can hold on to that while I dig a knife into that pretty little leg."

Finn almost passed out from the combination of rage and fear Josh's words brought. "I'm going to kill him," Finn said to no one. "I'm going to kill him."

Carol sat in the passenger seat, crying. Burt put his arm around her and looked at Finn. "Just get us there, son. Just get us there."

Someone behind Josh handed him a knife. "No," Rachel pleaded. "Don't do this."

Josh pulled the blade out, smiling at her. "You want to come with me?" Rachel shook her head, sobbing.

Finn heard her scream and knew that the boy cut her.


	19. Chapter 19

Rachel felt fire move up her leg as he cut deeply into her lower calf. "Stop!" she sobbed.

Josh smiled at her. "Come out and play with me," he said. When Rachel didn't move, he turned the knife back towards her leg. Rachel pulled her leg back with as much strength as she could, surprising him. He let go of it long enough for her to move all the way back to the other side of the car. "Alright, bitch," he growled. "I'll just come in and get you."

As the boy climbed into the car, Rachel frantically kicked at him. She didn't faze him; he continued coming no matter how hard she kicked. Grabbing her legs, he pulled her from the car door and under him. "Remember this?" he asked her, grinding his hips into her.

Rachel screamed and slapped at him. Josh roughly grabbed her hands, holding them above her head. "Oh yeah," he said close to her ear. "You remember."

Finn heard everything the boy was saying. He could imagine Rachel lying pinned under the boy, screaming. The idea of that man's hands on her made him sick.

Rachel looked around the overturned car for any sort of weapon but couldn't find one. "Get off of me," she told him fiercely.

"Or what?" he asked, kissing her neck. "What are you going to do?" Rachel turned her face and closed her eyes. "Oh, I get it. You're just going to lie there like the last time, right?" Holding both of her hands with one of his, he used his free hand to squeeze her breast painfully. "Pretending like you don't want it when I know you do."

Rachel turned to glare at him. "Finn is coming," she told him. "You're going to be sorry."

Josh back handed her. "I owe that son of a bitch," he told her. "He got the jump on me the last time. My friends are here now."

"Your friends won't be able to stop him," Rachel told him, her eyes not wavering from his.

"I guess I better enjoy myself until he gets here then," Josh said. He rose a little bit, trying to unbuckle his pants with one hand.

Rachel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Finn!" she screamed, startling the boy on top of her.

Finn almost drove off of the road. Rachel was screaming for him and he wasn't there. Again.

"What the-" Josh said, staring down at her.

Rachel took advantage of his surprise and got one of her hands loose. She clawed at his face, raking her nails down it. Josh let go of her other hand to cover his face. Rachel rose as much as she could, trying to scoot out from under him. Furious, Josh punched her as hard as he could. Rachel's head fell to the roof of the car, unconscious.

"Bitch," Josh said, holding her chin with his hand and pulling her head around so he could look at her face. She was out. His friends were calling to him from outside the car. "What?" he yelled. He heard the word "fire" and decided to see what was going on. Scooting out of the car, he grimaced when he cut his hand on a piece of glass. "What are you assholes yelling about?" he asked, getting out of the car.

"Tom's dumbass set the car on fire," his friend Michael told him.

Josh looked up to see flames coming from the top (bottom) of the car. "What the fuck, man?" he shouted to Tom. "I was in there!" Leaning back into the car, he grabbed Rachel's leg and pulled her out of the burning car.

"Just leave her in there," Zeke told him.

"Nah, I've got plans for this bitch," he told his friend. "When Hudson gets here, he's going to get to watch them."

"Whatever, man, let's get away from the car," Zeke said, watching the fire spread.

Josh picked Rachel up and threw her over his shoulder. She was tiny, so it wasn't a problem. "This shit is crazy, man," Zeke said.

"Hell yeah it is," Josh said, grinning. "I live for this shit."

Finn drove as fast as he could through the town; it had never taken him so long to get from one end to the other. "Finn, stop!" Blaine yelled from the back of the truck. Finn slammed on his brakes.

Blaine jumped out of the truck and ran towards a woman being attacked on the sidewalk. "Go!" he yelled to them. "I'll find another way there!" What's grand theft auto during a riot, right?

Finn nodded and began driving again. He couldn't hear Rachel anymore and he didn't know what was going on. His blood boiled when he thought of Josh and froze when he thought about what Rachel was going through. Kurt asked for his phone and Finn gave it to Burt to give to him.

Rolling into the factory parking lot, Finn saw the police car immediately. And it was on fire. Jumping out of the truck he ran for the car, getting down on his knees and looking into the car. "Rachel?" he yelled, coughing through the smoke. She wasn't in there.

"Finn, get away from that car!" Burt yelled.

"Rachel was in here," Finn told him.

"She's not anymore," Burt told him, pulling Finn away from it. "The car's on fire. We don't need to be around it."

"Where is she?" Finn asked desperately.

Burt handed him a bat. "Let's check the factory."

Carol opened the truck door and got out. "Mom, you need to stay with Kurt," Finn told her.

"I'm going to," Carol said, still crying. She kissed Burt, then grabbed Finn in a hug. "I'm so proud of you," she told him. "Go get our girl."

Finn nodded. He and Burt ran for the factory, passing several more burning cars. Burt leaned down to check on a man who was lying on the ground. Finding him alive, he began running again.

At the front of the factory a mob had formed. People were trying to get in, people were trying to get out; everyone was screaming. Finn grabbed a man who looked vaguely familiar. "What's going on?"

The man pulled back, gesturing to the factory. "They've got my brother in here," he told the boy. "Bastards."

"I'm looking for my girlfriend," Finn told him. "She's tiny, brown hair, brown eyes. Have you seen her?"

The man shook his head. "I haven't."

"I saw a boy carrying a girl over his shoulder into the factory," a woman next to them said. "She was unconscious."

Finn closed his eyes, clenching his fists. "Which way did they go in?" Burt asked the woman.

The woman gestured to the mob in front of them. "Carried her right through there, pretty as you please."

Finn fought his way through the crowd, getting to the front of the mob. "Let me in," he demanded, pushing the man blocking his way.

"Fuck you," the man said, throwing a punch. It connected, but Finn didn't even feel it.

Raising his bat, Finn looked at him. "I swear to God I will crack your head open," he told the man. "Let me in."

The man smirked at Finn, pulling a pistol out of the back of his pants. "Try me, kid."

Without hesitation, Finn swung the bat. The man, unprepared for an actual attack, didn't make a move to defend himself. Finn's bat connected with his head with less force than he'd intended because Burt had anticipated the move and tried to intervene, but it connected nonetheless. The man fell on his knees, pulling his hand away from his head and finding blood. "You little son of a bitch!" the man yelled, bending over to pick up the gun he'd dropped. Someone in the crowd grabbed it before he could and shot him.

Finn blinked. The man in front of him looked down at the wound in his chest, then up at Finn, incredulous. Finn rushed to catch him, lowering him onto the ground. He'd hit the man with a baseball bat just moments ago, but now as the man lay dying in his arms he couldn't wrap his mind around what was happening. Around them, people screamed and ran in all directions, many forcing their way into the factory.

Finn watched as the man's eyes closed, his chest moving in one last breath. "Finn," Burt told him, pulling him back. "He's gone, Finn. Let's find Rachel."

Finn shook his head, still staring at the man. He'd just watched a man die. He moved his hands and found that he had the man's blood on them. They were shaking, like the rest of his body. Another gun shot rang out beside them, and Burt was finally able to pull Finn up. "Come on!" Burt yelled.

Finn ran after his step father, looking back at the man lying on the ground. "Please let me find Rachel," he whispered in fervent prayer.

They ran into the front part of the factory. All of the glass in the office windows and doors had been busted out. "Where would they be?" Burt wondered out loud.

Finn shook his head, listening. "There's more noise that way," he said, pointing towards the factory floor.

"Do you know who it is that has her?" Burt asked Finn as they ran towards the voices. If they knew who they were looking for it would be easier to find them.

"It's Josh," Finn told him.

Burt shook his head. "That boy will never learn."

"He'll learn," Finn said lowly.

"I wish their dads had left them in jail," Burt muttered.

Rounding the corner, Finn and Burt found more chaos. A large brawl was going on in the middle of the factory floor. Finn didn't know who was fighting who or why; all he cared about was that none of them had Rachel. "She's not here," he told Burt.

In his pocket, Burt's cell phone rang. "Yeah?" he said into it, running in the direction Finn took off in. Carol told him that Mike and Sam had arrived and asked him where they should go. "How did they know?" He broke off. "Kurt." Carol agreed. "Tell them we're running up the stairs inside the factory. And tell them…" he lowered his voice so Finn wouldn't hear him. "Tell them there's a body at the entrance."

Carol gasped and related this information to the boys. "The radio says that the governor has declared Lima to be in a state of emergency. Help is coming in from all surrounding counties and they're talking about the National Guard being called in." She was quiet for a moment, listening to Burt's breathing. "I don't know how all of this happened, but I know that we're going to make it."

"We will, babe," Burt told her. "I love you." He hung up and looked at Finn in front of him. "You mom said that help's coming," he told the boy.

"Good," Finn said absently. They'd reached the top of the stairs and Finn didn't know which way to go…or even if they were in the right part of the factory.

"I'll go this way, you go that way," Burt told the boy.

"Should we split up?" Finn asked. He was worried about Burt; his heart attack hadn't been that long ago.

Burt smiled at him. "I'm fine," he told the boy. In truth, he felt like he was going to pass out at any minute, but that was just because he avoided running like the plague.

Finn nodded. "If I don't find anything, I'll head back this way. Yell if you find her." Burt ran off to the right and Finn turned to the left hallway. The first door he came to was locked and he used the bat to break it down. For a moment, he felt a strong sense of déjà vu; this reminded him of searching for Rachel the first day of school. He hoped he found her again before it was too late.

The first room was clear. The second door was open, but no one was in there. He heard someone running behind him and turned to find Sam. "Hey," Finn said, surprised.

"Hey," Sam said. "Kurt called us."

"Us?"

"Mike ran the other way."

"Good," Finn told him. "Burt's down there." He motioned for the doors. "Let's see if Rachel is in any of these."

The boys worked on opposite sides of the hallway, opening each door they came to. Finn had to use his bat several times; Sam had a long piece of wood he'd picked up downstairs and used it. Neither of them found anything.

"Son of a bitch," Finn moaned when they'd looked in the last door. He ran down the hallway towards Burt's side. "Did you find her?" he asked the older man.

"We haven't found anything," Mike answered for him.

"Shit," Finn said. "Where would they be?"

The group ran back down the steps, noticing that the fight on the main floor had grown even larger. Several people were lying on the floor, unconscious. "What the hell is going on?" Mike asked, shaking his head.

Burt's phone rang and he answered it. "We're coming," he said into it.

"They've got Rachel in the parking lot," he told Finn.

Finn ran to the exit, passing the body on the ground without a glance. Pushing people out of the way, he finally made it to the parking lot. He saw his mother struggling with a group of people, then watched her fall to the ground. "Mom!" he yelled, running faster.

Kurt knelt beside Carol, screaming at the people in the truck. The driver of the truck gunned it, squealing tires. In the back of the truck he could see Rachel. "Finn!" she screamed, struggling to get away from the arms holding her. Josh Stevens turned to look at Finn, smiling.

"Looks like I win this time!" the boy yelled to Finn.

Finn reached his mother, who was now sitting up. "Go get them, Finn," Carol told him, holding her head. "I'll be fine. Go get them."

Burt looked at the boy. "I'll stay with your mom. You go get Rachel."

Finn nodded and stood up, running for his truck. Mike, Sam and Kurt followed him. Mike and Sam jumped in the back, Kurt in the cab. "How's you head?" Finn asked him.

"I've felt better," Kurt said, holding on to the door as Finn sped out of the parking lot. He looked at his brother. "How are you holding up?"

Finn just shook his head, going faster. The other truck had a head start on them, but Finn hoped that they'd catch up. Reaching the square, Finn realized that he had no idea where they'd gone. "Fuck!" he yelled, hitting the dashboard. "Do you guys see them?"

"No," Mike and Sam called from the back of the truck.

Finn drove around the square, watching people run in and out of the road. Several buildings that had been fine when he'd gone through were already burned to the ground. He looked at Kurt. "Anything?"

Kurt shook his head, searching out the window for a sign of the truck that took Rachel. "I think we lost them," he told his brother.

"No!" Finn yelled, panicking. "We have to find her!"

Sam brought his head in close to the cab. "What are we going to do?" he asked.

"I don't know," Finn said, putting his face in his hands. "I don't know."


	20. Chapter 20

Rachel had never been more terrified in her life. She'd screamed so loudly from the back of the truck Josh had hit her again, knocking her unconscious. She didn't know where she was now, but she was grateful to be alone. She tried the door but realized it was locked. Hoping to not call attention to herself, she hadn't tried to force the door open. Now in the complete darkness, she tried to create a plan.

When she'd seen Finn run out of the factory, just the image of him had soothed her soul. In the brief moments her eyes had met his she'd been assured of two things; one, Finn Hudson loved her completely and two, he would save her. She didn't know how, but she knew that he would. Hearing noises in the other room, she prayed that he saved her before she was hurt too much. That was probably a selfish prayer, but she couldn't help herself.

Josh hated her. She could feel the hate radiating from him every time he was around her. She'd been around people who disliked her before, but she'd never been truly despised. It scared her. Everything happening scared her, and she didn't like it. She didn't want to constantly be the victim, waiting for whatever unfair punishment her captors chose to dole out. She searched the dark closet with her hands, trying to find anything that would help her escape. She couldn't find anything.

Taking deep breaths, she laid her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. Sounds of an argument startled her, causing her head to jerk up.

"My dad!" she heard a girl scream. A scuffle broke out and she heard something break. "Leave me alone!" the same girl shrieked, and Rachel heard the sound of a door slamming.

"Crazy bitch," she heard someone say, then the sound of male laughter. Luckily, it was heading away from her.

Rachel sat in the darkness for what seemed like a long time. The longer she waited, the more frightened she became. After what seemed like hours, she heard someone walking stealthily towards the closet door. Making herself as small as she could in the corner, Rachel held her breath. She heard the person outside of the door fumbling with the lock, then was shocked to hear the seemingly loud noise of the lock being broken. "Rachel?" she heard the person whisper as the door cracked open.

"Blaine?" she asked fearfully. Could it really be her friend?

"Hurry up," he told her, opening the door a little wider.

"What are you doing here?" she whispered.

Blaine shook his head and held his finger up to his lips. Nodding, Rachel followed him. She was shocked to realize they were in the school. She didn't see any of the boys that had taken her and wondered what they were doing. They could walk through the door at any minute and find her. Taking a calming breath, she decided to not think about it. She followed Blaine into the Choir room, then into Mr. Schue's office.

Blaine quietly shut the door behind them, turning the lock. Rachel threw herself into his arms, crying happy tears. "How did you find me?" she whispered.

Blaine hugged her back, then picked up the phone on Mr. Schue's desk, sighing when it didn't work. "None of the phones work," he told her in a whisper. Rachel sat with her back to the door and Blaine moved to sit beside her, holding his arm. "When Finn was driving to the factory to find you, I saw a man attacking a woman on the side of the road. I had Finn stop and I jumped out to help the lady, planning on finding a ride…or stealing one…and coming to help." Rachel nodded. "After I'd helped the lady fight off her attacker, there was another person who needed help, then another…I lost track of time, really. Then I heard you scream." He looked at her. "It chilled me to the bone. I recognized your voice immediately. The truck you were in was flying, so I jumped in the nearest car and followed it."

"How did they not see you?"

"They weren't paying attention," Blaine said simply. "I think they were watching for Finn's truck, but they didn't even seem to notice the little car I was in." He sighed. "They got here and you were unconscious. That Josh guy tossed you over his shoulder and carried you into the school, with all of the other people following. There were already quite a few people here."

"So they're using this school as a base?"

Blaine nodded. "It seems that way. I snuck in one of the kitchen doors and looked around a bit, trying to figure out where you were. I heard some of the guys talking in the cafeteria, saying they'd put you in that janitor's closet." He looked at her. "That's not all I heard."

"What is it?"

"They're going to let Finn know where you are, use you as bait. When he gets here…" He took a deep breath. "They're going to kill him, Rach."

Rachel's hand shot to her mouth. "No," she told him. "No, Blaine, we have to warn him."

"There's no way out of here," he told her. "It's getting close to the time they're all supposed to meet and they'll be all over the halls. We only made it in here by pure dumb luck."

"What about your cell phone?" Rachel asked.

"I lost it in the mall."

Rachel leaned her head against the door. "What do we do?"

Blaine put his head in his hands. "I don't know," he said wearily.

"Who was the girl that was arguing with the boys?" she asked after a moment.

Blaine shrugged. "I don't know her, but she's a Cheerio. Candi?"

"Brandi?" Rachel asked him, thinking of Quinn. Thinking of Quinn led to thinking of Puck and wondering how he was. She prayed he was okay.

"Yeah, maybe. Her dad was killed at the factory today."

"Oh no," Rachel said sadly. No matter what Brandi had done, Rachel felt a twinge of sympathy for the girl.

"We need to get out of here," Blaine said, staring at the ceiling. "Do you think we could make it through one of the vents?"

"I think we should try," Rachel told him, standing up. "We can't just sit here and let them find us." Blaine nodded, letting her help him up.

It seemed to Finn that night had come more quickly than it should have. He and his friends hadn't been able to find the other truck, though they'd been looking for hours. More police cars had moved into Lima and things seemed to be calming down. Burt had called him from the hospital to let him know that his mother was okay and had told him that two people were dead, and the hospital was overflowing with the injured. It was hard to process.

They were parked on the side of the road by Burt's shop and Finn had his head laid on his steering wheel. He couldn't seem to catch his breath and all he could think about was Rachel. He knew Kurt was worrying about Blaine. They were both a mess. His phone rang, startling him. Kurt looked at it. "Who is it?"

Finn didn't recognize the number. "Hello?"

"I know where your girlfriend is," a low voice told him.

Finn sat up. "Wait, who is this?"

"Just listen to me!" the voice hissed. "They're keeping her at the school. You better hurry!"

Finn's mind went completely blank as his heart started to race. "What?" he said into the phone, but the caller had disconnected.

"What did he say?" Kurt asked.

"He said that they've got Rachel at the school." Finn told his brother, his voice shaking.

"Where at at the school?"

"He didn't say."

"Mike, Sam!" Kurt yelled to their friends. "Hurry!"

Mike and Sam got up from the sidewalk and ran to the truck, jumping in. "Where are we going?" Mike asked.

"The school," Kurt told them. He dialed the police station as Finn started the truck. "It's busy," he said, staring at the phone as if it had turned into a rubber chicken.

"Try it again," Finn told him, racing through the streets and towards the school.

"How are we going to find her?" Kurt asked Finn, dialing the number. "Won't there be a lot of guys there?" He looked back at Mike and Sam. "There are only four of us."

"We'll have to sneak in," Finn told his brother. He could feel the look Kurt was giving him. "Look, I know I'm not the most coordinated guy, okay? But they have Rachel. We have to do this."

"So…the plan is to sneak into the school, find Rachel, hold hands and skip out?"

"Do you have a better idea?" Finn asked him.

"No," Kurt said, sighing, redialing the number. "It would be fantastic if someone somewhere could help us, though."

At the school, Zeke handed Michael his phone back. "But we don't have Berry," he said to Josh.

Josh shrugged. "We'll find her. She has to be around here somewhere. Besides, Hudson doesn't know we don't have her." He looked at Tom. "Is everyone ready?"

Tom nodded. "Everything's set up."

Josh smiled. "Let's go out and wait for the entertainment, shall we?" The other boys nodded, following him out of the room.

Quinn sat beside Puck's bed, staring out the window. The move to this hospital had made all of the difference in his condition. She wished they weren't so far away from their friends, though. Mercedes had been texting her all day, letting her know what was going on. She felt her phone vibrate and glanced down at it, expecting to see another text from her friend. It was a phone call from Brandi. Quinn debated as to whether or not she should answer it.

"What?" she said, finally answering it.

The other girl sobbed. "My dad is dead," she told Quinn.

Quinn sat up straighter. "I'm sorry, Brandi," she said.

"The guys…they laughed. They didn't care."

"That's terrible."

Brandi took a couple of deep breaths, trying to gain control of her emotions. "They're going to kill Finn," she said finally. "They're setting a trap for him at the school."

"What?" Quinn asked, sure she hadn't heard the other girl correctly. "What did you say?"

"They're going to use Berry as bait. When they catch him, they're going to kill him."

"Finn wouldn't walk into a trap like that," Quinn said.

The girl began crying again. "You do crazy things when you love someone," she said, hanging up.

Quinn stared at the phone, unsure what she should do. "What's happening?" Puck said from the bed.

"Puck," Quinn cried, jumping up and leaning over him. "How do you feel?"

"Like shit," he said, grimacing. "Who were you talking to?"

"Brandi," Quinn told him. "She said that Josh and some of the other guys are setting a trap to catch Finn."

Puck shook his head, then groaned at the pain it caused him. "Shit."

"Should I get a nurse?" she asked him worriedly. "Or your mom?"

"No," he told her. He looked at her for a minute. "Where's Rachel?" At the expression on Quinn's face he closed his eyes. "I didn't stop them," he said bitterly.

"You did, Puck," Quinn told him. "They didn't get Rachel that day."

"What the hell day is it?" he asked her. Before she answered, he reached for her hand. "They have Rachel?" Quinn nodded. "Then you were wrong. Finn is stupid enough to walk into a trap. He'd do anything for Rachel."

"What should I do?" she asked him.

"Call them. Tell them what's going on," Puck said. He didn't add a "duh" to his words, but it was implied.

Quinn quickly dialed Finn's number, but he didn't answer. "He's not answering." She dialed Mercedes. When the other girl answered, she said, "Mercedes, Finn is headed to the school-" she broke off. "They're all with him?" She closed her eyes. "Mercedes, it's a trap. They know Finn is coming. They're waiting for him." She was quiet for a moment. "They're not answering at all?" She looked at Puck. "They can't get through to the police. Finn has Kurt, Sam and Mike with him."

"Then they're all in trouble," Puck told her.

"Mercedes, someone has to do something. I'll keep calling them from here. Okay. Let us know, okay?" She hung up and ran over to her purse.

"What are you doing?" Puck asked her, closing his eyes. It was bullshit that he was already about to fall back to sleep.

"I still have Detective Bridges card," Quinn told him, digging through her bag. "If I can get him, maybe he can help us." Please, she thought, let him be able to help us.

Finn had turned his phone on silent, as had the other boys. They'd parked down the road from the school and walked to it, hoping they wouldn't be seen. Lying on a hill above the school, they looked down at it. "How are we going to get in?" Kurt whispered.

"Just walk up and go in?" Mike said. The other three boys glared at him. "Sorry," he said, looking back down at the school.

Finn closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. Puck was his best friend and had told him about a million different ways to get into the school. "The greenhouse," he said finally.

"What?" Sam asked.

"Puck said that they never lock the greenhouse so the Ag students can always get in and take care of their plants."

"They may not lock the greenhouse, but I bet they lock the door that leads into the school from the greenhouse," Kurt said.

"Puck gets in somehow," Finn told his friends. "I bet we could figure it out."

Sam sighed. "It's the best plan we've got," he said.

"I would just like to say, once again, that this is a really, really bad idea," Kurt told them as they moved cautiously around the school at a distance.

"We heard you the first five times, Kurt," Sam told him.

Inside the school, Rachel and Blaine were lost in the darkness of the vent system. The only light came from the vents below them, and it wasn't very much. "Is it okay to freak out now?" Rachel asked him, wiping sweat off of her face. "Because I'm freaking out."

"I think we're around Ms. Pillsbury's office," Blaine told her.

"Why?"

He stopped moving. "I smell bleach," he said with a shrug.

Rachel frowned. "I do too. Should we get down in her office?"

Blaine lay down on his stomach, his arm hurting. It had quit bleeding but was still numb…and he didn't think that was a good thing. "I don't know where we should get down," he said honestly. "I'm not Finn or Kurt. My brain shuts off in situations like this."

Rachel put her hand on his shoulder, lying beside him. "You're doing great," she told him with a smile. "You saved me, didn't you?"

Blaine nodded tiredly. "That I did, doll." He sighed. "If Finn does come to the school, which way is he likely to come in?"

"I don't know," she said, thinking about it. "Noah would come in through the greenhouse." She looked at Blaine. "Finn knows that! I bet that's how he comes in!"

"Good," Blaine said. "Let's rest for a minute and then go."

Rachel looked at him worriedly. "Blaine, you don't look well," she said softly.

"I'm not feeling so good," he told her. "Why don't you go find Finn and bring someone back to me?"

"I don't want to leave you," she said, tears welling in her eyes.

"I'll be okay," he said, his eyes closing. "I just need to rest."

"Blaine," Rachel said, nudging him. "Blaine."

He didn't wake up. He was still breathing, but he was out. She wiped the tears from her face, determined not to cry. Blaine was going to be okay and so was Finn. The people she loved were _not_ going to die today. She started crawling in the direction (she hoped) the greenhouse was in.


	21. Chapter 21

"I'm just saying, how does the teacher not notice that's marijuana?" Sam whispered to Mike. "I don't even smoke the stuff and I can tell that's what it is."

"Maybe it's the teacher's plant," Mike said, shrugging. "I don't know how you can even see it in this low light."

"No wonder Puck likes to spend time in here," Kurt said.

"Could we focus, please?" Finn asked. "We're in the school. Now we need to find a way to get out of this room." He walked over to the door, trying to open it. "Locked."

"Figured it would be," Kurt said. "Lift me up."

"What?" Finn asked him.

"Lift me up so I can see out the window of the door."

"Oh," Finn said. He bent down and made a stirrup with his hands. Kurt put one of his feet in it and looked out the high window. "I don't see anyone." He stepped down. "Where would they be?"

"Probably in a circle jerk in the gym," Mike said. Everyone looked at him. "Should I just stop talking or what?"

Finn shook his head, looking around the room. "If Puck can find the way in, we should be able to."

Kurt nodded, walking over to the wall closest to him. "What was that?" he said, frowning.

"What?" Sam asked.

"I heard it too," Finn said quietly, motioning for the other boys to stop talking. He strained to hear the noise again. "There it was again." They all looked up. "It's the vent," Finn told them. "Someone's coming."

The four boys circled around the vent, waiting to see who would come out of it. Finn held the bat he'd brought and motioned to the other boys that they should grab the shovels leaning against the wall. They heard the person in the vent stop moving. "Crap," she said, moving again.

"Rachel?" Finn said, his knees feeling weak.

Rachel stopped moving. "Finn?"

Finn dragged one of the tables over to the vent, standing on it and pulling on the vent cover. "Rachel!" he called to her softly.

Rachel crawled the rest of the way to the vent opening, looking down into the face of her boyfriend. "It's you," she said, smiling.

"It's me," he told her.

Rachel pushed herself out of the vent and into his arms. He caught her, hugging her tightly to him. Neither spoke for a moment. Finn finally pulled back and kissed her. "I've been so worried," he told her.

Rachel placed little kisses all over his face. "I was worried I'd never see you again."

"I can't believe you're here." He put his hands on the side of her face, looking into her eyes. "You're real."

Rachel turned her face into his hand, kissing his palm. "As much as we're enjoying this," Kurt said from the floor, "shouldn't we maybe hurry it up a little?"

Rachel looked down, surprised. She hadn't even noticed the other boys. "Boys!" she said, smiling down at them. Her smile turned into a frown. "We're in trouble," she said, looking at Kurt. "And Blaine is in trouble too."

"Blaine? What are you talking about?"

Finn hopped onto the floor and pulled Rachel down. "Blaine rescued me," she told them. He was with me to Ms. Pillsbury's office, but then he passed out."

"His arm," Kurt said, closing his eyes. "We have to go get him."

"How are we going to do that?" Sam asked him.

"Kurt, try to call the police again," Finn told him, putting his arm around Rachel. He just needed to hold her, to assure himself she was okay.

Kurt pulled out his cell and Rachel turned to Finn. "This was a trap," she told Finn. "They lured you here so they could catch you."

"What's the point of being an emergency service if you're not available for emergencies?" Kurt said angrily.

"Dude, they're probably pretty busy," Sam said. "In case you missed it, half of our town is in the process of burning down."

Kurt held his hand up, silencing the boy. "Mercedes has texted me 17 times to let me know this was a trap. Well that's awesome." He called her number and it went straight to voicemail. "I give up," he said, frustrated. "Why do people even _have _phones?"

"She texted me too," Sam said, scrolling through his texts.

Mike sighed. "I left my phone in the truck. I was afraid I'd break it. Seems stupid now."

"Want to use mine to call Tina?" Sam asked, still looking through his messages.

Mike shook his head. "No, man, I just want to get out of here. If I call her, she's going to want to come down here. I don't want that. I want her to be safe."

Sam nodded. "Mercedes would be the same way," he said.

"Send Burt a message. Tell him to keep trying the police and let them know where we are," Finn told Kurt.

Kurt nodded, sending it. "We need to get Blaine. We can't leave him here," Kurt said when he was done, putting his hands on his hips.

"How are we supposed to get up there, get him down, and carry him out of this place?" Sam asked.

Kurt frowned. "I don't know," he said miserably. "I just don't want to leave him up there, alone and hurt." He sighed again. "Though I hate dark, closed spaces and this is a terrible idea, I'm going up to be with him. You guys go get help."

Finn looked at him. "Are you sure, Kurt?"

Kurt nodded. "I'm not leaving him alone and you guys would move faster without us."

Mike nodded. "We'll bring back help, dude. Promise."

"Well good luck with that," Kurt mumbled, climbing the table. "So far the police have been _so_ helpful."

Finn helped Kurt get into the vent. "Good luck, bro. I'll see you soon."

Kurt pulled the vent closed. "If this is the last time I see any of you," he said before it was all the way closed, "I want you to know that I love you all. Finn, you and Rachel will have beautiful Finchel babies. Name one of them Kurt." With that, he closed the vent and started moving towards Ms. Pillsbury's office, holding back tears because of the strong possibility that this _would _be the last time he saw them.

Rachel looked at Finn, alarmed. "They really want to kill us," she said. "This could be it."

Finn pulled her to him. "I've got you," he told her. "And we're all going to make it out of here." He looked at the other boys. "Grab those shovels; we're probably going to need them."

"Should we just leave the way we came?" he asked his friends.

Sam shrugged. "It worked getting us in here," he said.

"If this is a trap, when are they planning on springing it?" Rachel wondered out loud.

The friends stood at the door, looking at each other. "I guess this is it," Mike said. "I wish I'd hugged Tina one last time."

"I wish that I'd brought rolling papers," Sam said, winking at Rachel.

Rachel couldn't help but smile. "Thank you guys for coming for me." She looked at Finn. "It means the world to me that you cared enough to risk it." In what seemed like a thousand years ago but was only two, she hadn't even had any friends; much less any that would risk their lives for her.

Finn leaned down and kissed her softly. "You're my everything, Rach," he whispered to her. "I had to."

"And we were tired of playing video games," Mike said, bumping shoulders with Sam. "Time to experience the real thing."

Rachel took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders, gripping the bat Finn had given her. "I guess it's time." She knew that though they were joking, they were scared. She was terrified of what they'd find on the other side.

Finn nodded and slowly opened the door. The night air blew over their skin like a warm breath. The four stealthily walked out of the building and into the dark, Sam shutting the door carefully behind them. They stood with their backs to the wall for a moment, each breathing hard though they'd only walked two feet.

Hearing something to the right of them, Sam and Mike looked in that direction. People were running towards them. "Shit," Sam said lowly. "Run!"

Finn grabbed Rachel's hand and pulled her behind him. The four ran around the building, towards the football field. Mike looked behind them. "They're still coming," he told his friends.

Reaching the football field, Finn stopped for a second. "Where should we go?" he asked, breathing hard.

"Let's run across the field and jump the fence on the other side," Sam said.

They got halfway across the field when the lights came on. They stopped running, shielding their eyes from the sudden brightness. "What is this?" Rachel cried.

Looking around them, they saw that they were surrounded. "This was the trap," Mike said. "We ran right into their trap."

Finn picked up his shovel. "Let us go!" he yelled.

"Why would we do that?" Josh asked, walking towards them. "We've gone to a lot of trouble to get you right here." He looked at Rachel. "Did you a lot of good getting away, didn't it?"

"Just let us go," Rachel said. "You don't have to do this."

"You're right," Josh said, raising his voice. "I don't have to do this." He turned around and looked at the group of his friends. "We don't have to do this, do we?" The crowd yelled in response. Rachel looked at Finn, frightened. The other teenagers looked crazed. "You know what we do have to do, Hudson?" Josh said, coming closer to them. "We have to follow your new "anti-bullying" policy." He looked around at his friends. "Do we want an anti-bullying policy?" The crowd shouted "No!"

"I don't believe that you're doing all of this because of a school policy," Sam shouted to them. "You're doing this because you're crazy. You're pathetic, and you're jealous of anyone that's going to make it out of Lima." He looked around at the kids he'd gone to school with. "This is crazy!" he yelled. "We're your teammates! We're in the same classes! We're real people!"

"Not for long," Josh said, still moving closer.

"Wait," Finn said, stepping forward. "You want me, right? That's what all of this has been about. You want me."

Rachel stepped closer to him, grabbing his arm. "Finn, stop," she pleaded.

"You're right, Hudson. We want you."

Finn looked at his friends, then down at Rachel. She was shaking her head, tears in her eyes. "Then take me," he told Josh, looking back up at him. "Let my friends go, and take me."

"No!" Rachel shouted.

"It looks to me like we've already got you," Josh pointed out.

"I've got a shovel," Finn told him. "If you don't agree to let my friends go, I'm going to take some of you out."

Sam stepped up too. "Finn, I'm not going to let them take you. I don't care if I go down; you're not fighting them alone."

"If you go down, I do down, too," Mike said, holding his shovel up.

"I'm not leaving you," Rachel said softly, shaking her head. "I don't care what happens." She looked up at him. "I could never leave you."

"Looks like we get all four of you," Josh said.

"Rachel, I can't let you fight," Finn said desperately. There was no way they could win this one. They all knew it.

"I don't have a choice, Finn," she told him. "I think I always knew it would come to this."

Finn looked at Josh, then at the other kids standing on the field. "You may beat us," he told them. "We may go down. But you're not winning. This isn't winning anything."

Josh shrugged, stopping in front of them. "But won't it be fun?" He signaled to the others, who ran towards them. The time had come.


	22. Chapter 22

"Hey!" a voice screamed over the speakers. Everyone stopped moving, startled. "Wait for us," the voice said. Kids ran to the field from all directions. Football players, cheerleaders, hockey players, soccer players…kids from the Math Club, kids from the Spanish Club, A/V kids; kids that didn't belong to any club at all. Soon they surrounded the group that was surrounding Finn, Rachel, Sam and Mike.

"Now while you've been getting your crazy on," the voice said, "we've been watching. And you know what? This shit ain't happening. We're tired of the bullying. We're tired of the bunch of you acting like you're the only ones that matter. And me? I'm tired of worrying about which one of my friends you're going to hurt next." Mercedes stepped out of the announcer's booth, microphone in hand. "Our town may be falling down around us, and every adult here may have lost their damn minds…but we're not giving up."

Tina rolled Artie onto the field, the rest of the girls behind them. "If you want to fight, you have to fight all of us!" Artie yelled.

Josh looked towards his friends. They'd spent the past few days preparing for this. They wanted blood. "Kill them all!" he screamed.

Finn, Sam and Mike put their backs to Rachel to protect her the best they could. Rachel felt like she was in a movie; everything was surreal. None of this could really be happening. People weren't really trying to kill them. That just didn't happen.

Finn hit the first boy that ran up to him with the shovel, dropping him. He swung the shovel back around, hitting the guy closest to him, but not as hard. More guys came and Finn held them off as much as he could, but he could tell it was a losing battle. The idea of any of them hurting Rachel kept him fighting.

Santana and Brittany fought their way through the crowd, trying to reach Rachel and the others. A boy hit Brittany in the face and she fell to the ground. Seeing red, Santana jumped on the boys back, wrapping her arms around his neck. She held on until someone hit her across the back with something hard. She fell to the ground, moaning. She looked up to see the boy who'd hit Brittany move to kick her. Brittany tackled him, knocking him to the ground. Santana smiled as she got up slowly. They were just getting started.

For 17 years of her life, Rachel had made sure to never hurt another living creature. She went out of her way to avoid physical conflict. When Mike went down and the guy who'd hit him started kicking him in the ribs, Rachel swung the bat she was holding as hard as she could without a moments hesitation. When push came to shove, Rachel discovered that she would fight to protect her friends.

Someone knocked Artie out of his chair. Lying on the ground, he refused to give up. He grabbed the legs of their attackers, slowing them down. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he bit several of them. You gotta do what you gotta do.

The battle waged on. Mercedes had made her way to the field and was swinging a folding chair she'd found in the announcers booth at anyone who came near her. A boy ran up to her and stopped. Mercedes cocked her eyebrow at him, chair pulled back. He shook his head and ran off.

Lauren ducked her head, ramming into any and everyone in her way. A cheerleader jumped on her back and she chuckled. "You're a brave little bitch, I'll give you that," she said, reaching for the girl's hair. "Too bad I have to break you." She pulled the girl over her shoulder and slammed her on the ground. The girl looked up in horror. Lauren just smiled.

Tina was fighting two girls she'd never even met, but it was obvious they hated her. "Freak!" one of the girls screamed, slapping her.

"I don't even know you!" she yelled, tackling the girl and hitting her. The other girl grabbed her by the hair, pulling her off of her friend.

"We don't have to know you to know you're a freak!" she said.

Lauren ran up behind the girl and hit her, knocking her down. She winked at Tina. "Beat their asses." Tina smiled, nodding.

They weren't winning, but they weren't losing. They were holding their own. And then it happened.

"No!" Rachel screamed, her voice echoing across the field. Many of the kids fighting looked up.

Zeke was holding Rachel as she kicked and screamed, trying to reach Finn. Finn was on his knees, shaking his head and trying to figure out what had happened. Tom had picked up Mike's shovel and swung it at Rachel. Finn, seeing the movement, had pushed her out of the way, getting hit in the side of the head.

Josh moved in front of Finn. "Looks like we do win," he told the boy. He looked out into the crowd. "This took longer than I thought it was going to, but we got what we wanted." He looked down at Finn. "We got you."

Rachel fought harder than she had in her life. She couldn't stand by and watch them hurt Finn. "Bring her here," Josh told Zeke.

Through pain glazed eyes, Finn watched Josh jerk Rachel's head back. "Hold her still," he told his friend. "You see this?" he asked Finn. "This is mine." He leaned over Rachel and bit her neck. Rachel screamed in anger and in pain, trying to kick him. Josh smiled. "Just imagine the fun she and I are going to have." He slapped her, watching Finn's face as he did so. "Doesn't that look like fun, Hudson? I bet there's been a time or two you've thought about slapping her." Looking back at Rachel, he backhanded her. "I sure do enjoy it."

"Rachel!" Santana screamed from inside the crowd.

Finn tried to stand up but didn't make it. Josh laughed, moving closer to him. "You lose," he said, punching Finn. Finn fell to the ground.

"Stop!" Rachel screamed. "Finn!"

Taking the shovel from Tom, Josh looked at Rachel. "Finn!" he mocked, swinging the shovel and hitting Finn. Hitting him again, Josh laughed at Rachel. "He's a hero, right?" Again and again he hit the other boy.

Rachel sobbed, unable to move. "Finn," she moaned.

Josh leaned down, looking at Finn. "Get up, hero," Josh told him. "You hear her calling for you, don't you?"

Finn blinked, pushing himself up shakily. His arms trembled and he couldn't breath. Josh laughed and kicked him in the stomach. Fire spread throughout Finn's body and he fell back down. His eyes met Rachel's. He could feel her fear.

Rachel closed her eyes and slumped forward, limp. "Damn, Josh, she fainted," Zeke said.

Josh turned around to check on Rachel. Finn spit blood out of his mouth. Using every ounce of strength he had left, he jumped up. He reached for the shovel Josh was holding; in his surprise, the other boy had loosened his grip. Pulling it back, Finn swung with all of his might, hitting him. Josh dropped to the ground, unconscious.

Falling back on his knees, Finn looked at Zeke. "Let her go," he said.

Zeke looked down at Josh, then back at Finn. "Fuck you," he said. "You can't even stand up."

"I can," Sam said from behind Finn. "Let her go."

Before the boy said anything, Rachel's head flew up and hit Zeke's face. "Fuck!" he screamed, dropping Rachel and holding his nose. "She broke my nose!"

Rachel landed hard on her hands and knees. She crawled to Finn. "Finn," she said, reaching him. Finn wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. The world was spinning, but Rachel kept him centered.

The fight continued around them. Tom hit Sam from behind, almost knocking him down. Mike slowly rose, certain he had at least one broken rib. When a boy ran at him, Mike just sidestepped him, bringing his knee up into the boy's stomach. Watching that guy drop, he moved on to the next guy waiting to attack him.

Someone kicked Artie in the face, breaking his glasses. Unable to do anything but crawl around blindly, he still tried to trip as many people as possible. Eventually a boy realized what Artie was doing and straddled him, hitting him in the face until he was unconscious. Mercedes ran to them, swinging her chair at the boy on top of him, knocking him off. While she bent to check on Artie, another boy ripped the chair out of her hands. Mercedes turned to look at him. "I'm gonna remember you," she said as the boy swung the chair towards her, knocking her over.

"No!" Sam yelled, running towards them. He hit the boy with his shovel, knocking him down. "Mercedes," he said, bending over the girl.

Mercedes looked at him. "Did that motherfucker really just hit me with a chair?" she asked, holding the side of her head.

"Yeah," Sam told her. He would have laughed if he hadn't been so worried.

"You better beat his ass," she said.

"I already did," Sam assured her.

"Hand me my chair," she said, slowly getting up. "They've done messed with the wrong woman."

Knocking Josh out didn't stop his friends from wanting to hurt Finn. "Rachel," Mike called, tossing her the baseball bat she'd dropped.

"Thanks," Rachel said, turning to face the two guys who'd been circling her and Finn. "Just leave us alone," Rachel told them, "and no one has to get hurt."

One of the boys snickered. "It's not going to be us that gets hurt," he told her, lunging towards her.

Rachel moved back, swinging the bat. "We'll see," she said. She didn't look down at Finn, who was fighting to stay conscious.

The other boy ran for Rachel and she swung again, connecting with his arm. "You bitch!" he howled.

The first boy saw an opportunity and moved to grab her. Before he could, Santana jumped on his back, hitting him in the side of the face. Rachel looked up and saw Brittany fighting off a large football player. Rachel ran to them, hitting the football player in the back of the head. He fell down. "Thanks," Brittany said, running to help Santana.

Lauren was fighting with one of the larger football players. She kept trying to get close to him but he kept backing up. She knew that if she could get close enough, she'd be able to put him down. Mercedes ran behind the boy, hitting him in the back with her chair. Screaming, the boy moved closer to Lauren who did the Lou Thesz Press, landing on top of him. "Thanks!" she called to Mercedes.

Rachel looked around them. The scene was a lot like the one she'd briefly witnessed in the factory today…just bigger. She looked down at Finn, who was sitting up. "Should you be sitting up?" she asked him worriedly.

He grimaced. "I'm feeling better."

Rachel stared at him. "Yeah, I'm sure you're fine."

Finn sighed. "I'm getting up, Rachel," he told her.

She looked into his eyes. "I just love you, is all," she said quietly.

Finn smiled softly. "Help me up?"

Rachel gave him her hand and helped him up. He swayed a little and she put her arm around him, steadying him. "Got it?" she asked him.

Finn nodded, not answering. He looked around them. "I can't believe this," he said.

"What should we do?"

"Tina!" they heard Mike scream. They looked in the direction the cry had come from and found their friend sitting on the ground rocking his girlfriend.

They ran to the couple. "Mike, what happened," Rachel said, falling to her knees beside them.

"I found her like this," Mike said, crying.

"Let me see," Finn said.

Mike brushed Tina's hair out of her face. Finn leaned over the girl, gritting his teeth against the dizziness he felt. "Look there," he told Mike, pointing at Tina's head. "She's been hit with something."

Mike pulled her back to him and continued to rock her. "Help will come soon, right?"

Finn nodded and prayed that it was true. He looked around the field, searching for his friends. Sam was carrying an unconscious Artie from the field. Brittany and Santana were still on the field fighting, as was Lauren. Mercedes was walking towards them. "I wish Puck was here," Finn said. Rachel squeezed his hand.

"I don't even know some of these kids that are fighting with us," Rachel said. "How did they all know to come?"

"We called them," Mercedes said, stopping beside them. "We called, texted, IM'd and PM'd every kid we could think of and told them what was happening. They're just as sick of this mess as we are. This is their fight too."

"How did you know where we were?" Rachel asked her.

"Saw the lights come on."

"Thank you, Mercedes," Finn told her. "You guys saved us."

Mercedes looked out onto the field. "It's too early to be thinking you're saved," she told him. She looked down at Tina and shook her head. "None of us are saved yet."

Rachel nodded. She started to say something when she saw Lauren go down. "Lauren," she said, standing up. Three boys stood around the girl, kicking her.

Finn rose slowly, taking the bat. Mike stood as well, laying Tina gently on the ground. "Will you stay with her, Mercedes?"

Mercedes nodded. "I'll watch her."

Rachel, Finn and Mike reached Lauren, swinging at the boys that were kicking her. Two were knocked down and one ran off. Lauren got up slowly, hurt. "Damn, they had me," she said, staggering. Mike stood by her, steadying her.

Sam returned from laying Artie on the bleachers and joined them. "I'm ready to go back to video games," he told them tiredly.

They moved to the middle of the field to join Brittany and Santana, exhausted and worried about their friends. They all knew help would come. They just didn't know when…or if it would be too late.


	23. Chapter 23

Mike and Brittany were both down. Santana stood over them, fighting attackers off. Tears filled her eyes but she didn't stop. Artie and Tina were both still unconscious. Finn was seeing two of everything and Sam was afraid that his wrist was broken.

Though Finn tried to stop anyone that came close to her, Rachel figured her nose was rebroken and that she'd need stitches on her right arm after being attacked by a girl with a broken bottle. Lauren had saved her from that fight, and was still fighting. Rachel didn't mention the nose or the arm to Finn. She saw the weariness in his eyes. Like the rest of them, he just wanted it to be over.

They were tired. They were fighting now because they were afraid of what would happen if they stopped. So many of the kids that came to help them had fallen. Rachel walked across the field, stumbling over the unconscious (she prayed that's all they were) bodies of friend and foe. She didn't know when they would be able to stop fighting or how the victor was even supposed to be determined. As far as she could tell, they were all losing. She saw Mercedes still fighting, even though she'd lost her chair somewhere. She knew that her friend would continue to fight until she could no longer move. Mercedes had the heart of a fighter.

A wrestler ran into Finn, trying to knock the taller boy down. Sam hit him with the baseball bat Rachel had given him, probably breaking the boys shoulder. Sam turned and gave Finn his hand, helping him up. Broken bones were something they were all becoming too familiar with. McKinley High had become a war zone.

When someone grabbed Rachel's hair and pulled her back, she was almost too tired to fight back. "Finn!" she cried, struggling against the person who had her.

Finn turned around and felt the earth stop spinning. Zeke had Rachel…and had a gun to her head. "Zeke," he said hoarsely. "No."

Zeke pressed the gun to Rachel's head and she stopped moving. "Oh my God," she said breathlessly.

"My life is over anyway, right?" Zeke said shakily. "Even before this, it's not like I was ever getting out of Lima. I would have ended up just like my old man, working at the factory. Except he doesn't even have that anymore."

"Let her go, Zeke," Finn said desperately.

Zeke looked around. "What are we even fighting for?" he asked. "We were lost before it even began."

Finn noticed the brightness of the other boy's eyes, the trembling of the hand holding the gun. Zeke had lost it. He had given up all hope and was ready to end it any way that he could. And he wanted to take Rachel with him. "Please man, just let her go. You can take me." Finn walked closer to him.

Zeke pointed the gun at Finn. "Stop walking, Hudson."

Finn stopped moving. He saw Sam stop beside him. "Zeke, listen. I'm begging you, just listen to me," Finn said. He couldn't look at Rachel. He'd lose it. His heart was beating so loud he couldn't hear anything else. "It's my fault, right? Everything that happened, it was all my fault."

"Finn," Sam said lowly.

"No, it was. I did this. I tried to force you guys into something you didn't want to do."

Zeke turned the gun back to Rachel and Finn shook his head. "I don't even know what I was doing," he told them. "Josh came up with the plans and I just followed them. I was so angry…and I don't even know why. But now…" he looked again at the people still fighting. "It's over. Everything is over. If I got away from here tonight, they'd find me."

Finn's gut clenched. Zeke was talking like someone who had decided to end his own life. "There's always hope," Finn told him. "You can always get help."

"I don't want help!" the boy screamed, causing everyone to jump. "I don't need your fucking help! I'm not going to be able to dance around and sing and everything magically be okay!"

"What do you want, Zeke?" Sam asked him. "What do you want? Just tell us and we'll give it to you. Whatever it is, we'll let you have it."

"I want this bitch to die," Zeke said, pushing the gun into Rachel's head. Rachel closed her eyes but the tears kept coming. She could feel Zeke's entire body shaking. She knew that if she made one move, she'd be dead. She forced herself to open her eyes. If she was going to die, she wanted Finn to be the last person she saw.

Even with dirt and blood covering his face, he was the most handsome boy she'd ever known. His hair was sticking up in the front and all she wanted was to run to him, smile and comb it down with her fingers. She had loved him for as long as she'd known him. Even though the last week had been hell, she and Finn had loved more fiercely than most people do in a lifetime. Maybe that would have to be enough. Right now his cheeks were flushed red and she watched his lips move as he said something to Zeke. He looked terrified.

"Finn," Rachel said softly. His eyes moved to her face. "I love you."

"No," Finn said, his face crumpling. "No, Rach, it's not over."

"If I'm going to lose my life," Zeke told him, "it's only fair that you lose something to."

"Take _me_!" Finn cried, hitting himself in the chest. Tears ran down his face in streaks through the dirt and blood. "Shoot me! Don't take her. She hasn't done anything. She's innocent."

"You'll remember this for the rest of you life. By shooting her, I am taking you."

"I love you Rachel," Finn said, looking at her. "I love you."

Rachel nodded slightly, biting her lip. Finn's eyes held hers for a moment longer, then he charged the boy, screaming.

The shot rang out across the football field. Everyone stopped fighting, some with their weapons halting in midair. "No!" Finn screamed in anguish. "No!"


	24. Chapter 24

Rachel fell to the ground, Zeke falling on top of her. Detective Bridges holstered his gun and ran to the couple. Police officers swarmed the football field, breaking up fights and arresting everyone; they don't know who was who. Someone else could sort it out later.

Finn ran to the bodies, pushing Zeke off of Rachel. "Rachel!" he cried.

Detective Bridges leaned over Zeke, checking for a pulse. "He's still alive!" he yelled to the EMT workers behind him. They ran to the boy, working as quickly as they could to get him to the ambulance.

Finn pulled Rachel into his arms, wiping her hair out of her face. "Rachel?" he said again.

Rachel's eyes fluttered open. "I think," she rasped, "I've been shot."

Finn's eyes searched her body. "Where?" he said frantically.

"My shoulder," she whispered.

Finn held her up, turning her slightly to see her back. "Oh God, Rach," he said. The bullet had gone through Zeke and into Rachel. Blood from the wound was staining her shirt in an ever widening circle.

"It's not that bad," she told him, cupping his face with her hand. "I'm alive."

Finn looked at her, shaking his head. He looked at Detective Bridges. "She's been shot," he told the man.

The detective frowned and called for more EMT workers. "I'm sorry, Ms. Berry. He was going to pull the trigger. I had to take the shot."

Rachel tried to smile at the man. "You saved my life," she said.

A lone EMT came to Rachel and checked out the bullet wound. "I know it hurts, but we're going to get you taken care of in just a minute, okay?" Rachel nodded. The EMT looked at Finn. "Any bullet wound is serious, but this one is not life threatening."

Finn sighed in relief. "Thank you," he told her. She nodded and ran back to the ambulance she came in to prepare for Rachel.

"A lot of our friends are hurt," Finn said, looking at the detective.

Bridges sighed. "A lot of people are hurt, son. The National Guard has taken over Lima. We've set up emergency hospital facilities throughout the town." He looked down at Rachel. "I'm sorry to say that many lives have been lost."

Rachel looked at Finn. "My dads," she said.

Finn searched his pockets for his phone but discovered that he'd lost it at some point. "We'll call them as soon as we can," he told her. He was worried about his mom; he needed to call her too. He looked at the detective. "My brother is in a vent over Ms. Emma Pillsbury's office. His boyfriend is unconscious."

The detective looked surprised but nodded. "I'll send a rescue team over there right now. What are they doing in a vent?"

"We were trying to escape," Rachel said. It seemed like a week ago that she and Blaine had been crawling through the vents.

The EMT workers came for Rachel, loading her onto a stretcher. "I need to go with her," Finn said.

Sam came over to them. "I'll make sure everyone is taken care of," he told Finn, squeezing his shoulder. "You go take care of your girl."

Finn nodded, pulling the other boy in for a hug. "Thanks, Sam. For everything."

Pulling away, he ran to the ambulance that had Rachel in it and climbed in. He took her hand and smiled at her, leaning his head over to kiss her hand. "I love you," he told her.

He looked out the back of the ambulance window at the devastation on the football field; Sam was leading a group of EMT's to their friends. Finn was willing to bet that Sam hadn't mentioned his wrist yet; he'd wait until everyone else had been taken care of before he got help himself.

"Mr. Hudson, you have quite a bit of blood on you," one of the EMT's said. "Are you wounded?"

"I'll be okay," he told them.

"Finn, you're not okay," Rachel said, looking at him. She turned to look at the EMT closest to her. "He's not okay. He was hit repeatedly with a shovel."

"Rachel," he sighed, then shook his head. "Yeah, so I'm seeing two of everything," he told the EMT. "That's probably not okay, right?"

"Can he just lie with me?" Rachel asked them.

"Honey, with the loads we're going to be carrying tonight, a body would be lucky to only have to share a bed with one other person," the female EMT told her.

Finn didn't need to be told again. He moved to the bed, careful to get in on the side of Rachel's uninjured arm. "Hey," he said, looking at her.

"Hey," she said, smiling weakly.

"We made it."

"I knew we would."

"You got shot, though," he said, wincing.

"My nose actually hurts more than the bullet," Rachel told him. She fidgeted a little, then grimaced. "Well, maybe not more."

"The bullet had slowed down by the time it hit you," the male EMT said.

Rachel shuddered, realizing that it was Zeke's body that slowed it down. She looked at Finn. "I'm glad he's alive…but a part of me thinks that I would have been okay with him dying." She closed her eyes. "I've turned into an awful person," she whispered.

Finn kissed her head. "You're human, Rach," he told her. "You're allowed to be human." He grinned at her. "Think you'll start eating meat?"

"No!" she said, rolling her eyes.

Finn smiled. "It was worth a try."

As they rode through town they could see fires still blazing and hear people screaming. "It's not over yet, is it?" Rachel asked the EMT.

She shook her head. "It calmed down for a while, but when the National Guard got here a lot of people got worked up again."

"I hope our parents are okay."

Finn nodded. "They will be."

Rachel buried her head in his shoulder. "I'm so tired," she said.

Finn nodded, closing his eyes. "I couldn't believe it when our friends showed up," he said after a minute. "That was one of the greatest moments of my life."

Rachel laughed softly, the movement causing her pain. She moaned, then laughed again. "Crap," she said, taking a deep breath and then letting it out. "I thought Tina was going to use Artie as a battering ram."

"She could have. It works."

"I hope he's okay," Rachel said softly. "I hate to think of any of them being hurt."

"I'm worried about Tina," Finn admitted. "Whatever hit her knocked her out completely."

"Mike's in pretty bad shape, too," Rachel said. "And Blaine. I hope they find Blaine and Kurt okay."

"I can't believe Kurt climbed into the vent to be with him. He's terrified of things like that."

Rachel laced her fingers with his. "Our friends are so brave," she said. "We're lucky to have them."

Getting to the hospital, they were taken into different parts of the Emergency Room. The bullet was removed from Rachel's back, her arm was stitched up, and x-rays proved that her nose was, once again, broken. "Great," she muttered.

Finn had two cracked ribs, a mild concussion, a hairline fracture in his jaw and another one in his skull. "At least we get to spend the night together," Rachel said as she walked into their hospital room and sat down on his bed.

Finn wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down to him. "We need to check on everyone else, but I'm so tired," he said, absolutely exhausted.

Rachel nodded. The first place she called was her home. Not getting anyone, she called each of her dad's cell phones. Frustrated, she left a message on all three phones. She then called Burt, getting him. "Finn and I are in room 201," she told him. "Just come whenever you can." She listened, nodding. "I'm glad you're okay too," she said.

"What did he say?" Finn asked.

"His shop is completely gone," she told him.

Finn sighed, nodding. "I hope his insurance covers whatever this was."

"Me too," Rachel said, dialing Mercedes cell phone number. She left the other girl a message. "No one ever answers their phones," she complained.

"You sound like Kurt."

"I'm calling him next," she said, dialing his number.

"Hello?"

"Kurt!" Rachel said. "What's going on?"

"Blaine and I are on our way to the hospital," Kurt told her.

"How is he? Is he any better?"

"He was conscious for a moment," Kurt told her. "He just lost a lot of blood."

"Tell him I said thank you, will you?" Rachel said.

"I'll tell him," Kurt said. "Tell that big oaf of a brother that I said I love him and I'm glad he didn't die."

Rachel smiled. "I will. We're glad you didn't die too."

"I'll see you at the hospital, Little Diva."

Rachel hung up and turned around in the bed to lie on her side, facing Finn. "Blaine and Kurt are on their way, his dad and your mom are fine, and help has arrived for our friends."

"There's a funny feeling in my chest," Finn told her, yawning.

"What do you think it is?" Rachel asked him, her eyelids getting heavier.

"Hope," Finn said, drifting off to sleep.

"Hope," Rachel echoed, following him. "I like it."


	25. Chapter 25

"I can't believe you're sleeping!" Kurt yelled angrily.

Finn sat up quickly. "What happened?" he asked, the room spinning around him.

"The town is burning down around us and you're sleeping," Kurt said, standing at the foot of the bed. Finn was still seeing two of everything, so there was actually _two _angry Kurt's at the foot of the bed.

Finn rubbed his eyes, still trying to figure out what was going on. "What the hell are you talking about? Do you have any idea what we've been through?"

"Do you know what I'm going through right now? Do you know what's happening to your friends while you're sleeping?"

"They're on their way here," Finn said defensively.

"Yeah, they were."

"What do you mean, they were? Where's Blaine?"

"He's with me."

Finn looked around the room. "No he's not."

"Look, Finn, if you're going to be our leader, you need to at least be paying attention."

"What the fuck is your problem, Kurt?" Finn asked, angry. "Rachel was _shot _for God's sake."

"Rachel is fine. You're fine. You're both alive."

Finn pushed the blanket off of him, sitting on the edge of the bed. His head was killing him; sitting up had caused a fresh wave of dizziness. "Kurt, just tell me what you want me to know, okay?" He looked up at his brother.

"You have to save us," Kurt said.

Finn sighed and closed his eyes. "You're already saved." He looked at Kurt to tell him to just leave but he was gone. Something exploded by his hospital window and he jumped up. Looking out, he could see that everything was on fire; even the ambulances carrying their friends. "No!" he screamed, beating against the window.

"Finn!" Rachel said, shaking him. "Finn, baby, wake up."

Finn sat up in the bed, breathing hard. "What?"

Rachel rose on her knees, holding his face in her hands. "Baby, you were having a nightmare."

"No, it was real," he said, pulling away from her and going to the window. He could see fire in the distance but there were no explosions and none of the ambulances were ablaze. His head was throbbing, though, and he was still seeing two of everything. That had been real.

"Finn," Rachel said, standing behind him, "we're okay."

"What about Kurt and Blaine and the rest of our friends?"

Rachel wrapped her arms around his waist and put her cheek against his back. "Kurt and Blaine made it here okay. I'm not sure about the rest yet, but I'm sure they're fine too."

"Are the riots still going on?"

Rachel nodded. "They're calming down, though. Daddy said that the National Guard really moved things along."

"Your dads are okay?" Finn turned around and put his arms around her. "How long was I sleeping?"

"A few hours," she told him. "My dads were hit by a stolen car driven by an 11 year old. Dad's leg is broken and they're keeping him here for observation. He's going to be okay, though. Daddy is down there with him."

"My Mom and Burt?" he asked, putting his hands under the little shirt she wore and rubbing her back.

Rachel moved closer to him. "Both fine. They'll be back."

"Puck?"

"He's doing better. Quinn was the one who contacted Detective Bridges to let him know what was going on at the school. She said Brandi called and told her. I guess her Dad was killed at the factory today and she decided she didn't want to be a part of any of it anymore."

Finn's stomach clenched. Brandi's dad was probably the man Finn had seen get shot. "That's awful," he said.

"So many things about this are awful," Rachel said sadly.

Finn looked down into her face. "I love you," he told her, leaning down to kiss her lightly. "When I thought Zeke had shot you…" he trailed off. "Rachel, I can't ever go through anything like that again."

"I know," she said softly. "I know." She leaned up and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Always with the kissing," Kurt said, coming into their room.

"Kurt," Finn said, smiling at his brother. He didn't let go of Rachel, though. He didn't think he could. "How's Blaine?"

"Doing better," Kurt told him. "They gave him some blood. His mom's in there with him right now."

"What about Tina?" Rachel asked him.

"She and Mike went to a different hospital."

"I hope they're okay," Rachel said.

"Who is here?" Finn asked him.

"Artie is here. He's fine; they just beat the crap out of him. He said something about a loose tooth? Mercedes dad can probably help him with that. She and Sam are at the police station trying to help them figure out who was friend and who was foe. Sam's wrist was broken, but they set it at one of the smaller hospital set ups."

"I don't envy them that job," Rachel said. "I can't believe how many kids showed up to help. It was amazing."

"I wish I'd been there," Kurt told them.

"I know how hard it must have been for you to be in that vent for so long," Finn told him. "You were really brave."

"Of course I was," Kurt said. "I have decided to write a letter to our Senator, expressing my displeasure at the lack of available emergency services during crisis."

"Porcelain, please do so," Sue said from the doorway. "If it's well written enough I'll read it during one of my debates." She walked into the room and looked at Finn and Rachel, then back at Kurt. "Your boyfriend was looking for you," she told him.

Kurt nodded, looking at Finn and Rachel. "I'll be back later to check on you," he told them.

"Ms. Sylvester," Finn said after Kurt had left the room. "I haven't seen you around much."

"Well, Mr. Hudson, I've been busy setting up my election campaign," she told him. "Sit," she told them, and they did so. Though they didn't think about it, Sue Sylvester was someone that you just listened to. "I wasn't around when Figgins decided to vote in the new school policies, but if I had been I would have been able to tell him what would happen as a result. People don't like being told that they have to change who they are." She looked out the window at the fires raging downtown. "People say I can be a bit of a bully," she continued, looking back at them. "That's just the way I am."

"The way you are hurts other people," Rachel told her.

Sue sighed and put her hands in her pockets. "I would normally disagree with you, Berry. I would say that it helps build character. After what's happened in the past week, I can't in good conscience say that's true. It got out of control. I know that many of my cheerleaders were a part of the attacks on you and your friends and I want to extend my apology to you both, as well as to them. In my attempt to make them stronger, I may have pushed them into something else entirely." She walked towards the door, pausing for a moment. "I'm glad you're both okay." With that, she was gone.

Rachel looked at Finn. "That was odd."

Finn nodded. "She's right, though. For as long as I can remember, most of the faculty has looked over the bullying behavior as if it wasn't a problem. Maybe now they'll all see that it is."

Rachel put her head on his shoulder as he put his arm around her. "Maybe things will change for the better at McKinley," she said.

"Half the student population will be in juvie," he said, smiling. "That's a start."

"I can't imagine walking down the hallways and not being afraid," she admitted. "The first day I packed an extra pair of clothes and I remember praying that I wouldn't need them. I almost left them in the car."

Finn kissed her forehead. "No more slushie facials means you won't need a change of clothes."

Rachel nodded. "I wonder what will happen to the football team," she murmured.

Finn frowned. "I don't know. Puck's out, Sam will be out, we don't know about Mike…all of those other guys are out. We won't have a team."

"Maybe I'll join again," Rachel said, smiling at him.

Finn smiled back at her, placing a lingering kiss on her lips. "You do look good in a uniform," he told her huskily.

"So do you," she told him. The warmth of Finn around her steadied her. Sitting in a hospital room with their town on fire around them, she felt safe inside his arms. "You know…after all of this, New York will be a breeze."

Finn chuckled, wincing a little when his ribs began hurting. "I don't know if New York is ready for us."


	26. Chapter 26

Rachel was hot. It had to be 90 degrees in this building, she was sure of it. "Hey you two, we're taking everyone to the lake," Carol told them, walking into the room she and Finn were painting. "We have a surprise for y'all. Whenever Finn gets down, you guys can drive on out, okay?"

Rachel looked up at Finn, who was standing on top of a ladder trying to paint the corners of Burt's rebuilt office. "Will there be food?" he asked.

Carol laughed. "There will be food. We'll cook out. We're going to have a bonfire later, too, so there will be smores!"

"We'll be there," Finn said, winking at Rachel.

"Rachel, I'm getting some of those vegetable kabobs you like," Carol told the girl. She looked around at the room. "You kids have done such an amazing job. I'm so glad that you've all taken the time to help."

In the week since the riot had died down, the majority of Lima's residents had been rebuilding. The Glee Club split its time between helping Burt rebuild his shop and helping Mercedes dad rebuild his office. Though they have a variety of injuries, they'd been able to get quite a bit done.

Finn thought Rachel didn't notice him wincing every time he stretched to nail a board or paint something above his head, but she did. She knew he was hurting. She also knew that he wouldn't let it stop him from helping out.

"Don't let him work too hard, okay?" Carol whispered to Rachel. Rachel nodded. Carol kissed her on the cheek and left.

"Your mom is worried about you," Rachel told him after she'd left.

Finn shrugged, the motion causing him to teeter on the ladder. "Finn!" Rachel shrieked.

Steadying himself, he looked down at her. "I'm fine," he told her. "I keep telling you, I keep telling her, I keep telling _everyone_, I'm fine."

Rachel looked up at him. "I'm still going to worry." She stuck you lower lip out a bit and crossed her arms. "You can't stop me."

Finn laughed, climbing down the ladder. Rachel started putting away the paintbrushes and rollers she'd been using while he washed up. She was tired, but it was a good tired. After the war they'd been through, they'd all come out a little jaded. Finn still had nightmares where he was too late to save his friends. Rachel still got a little nervous around large men she didn't know. Kurt refused to be in a dark room. They were all carrying around reminders of what had happened, even if they weren't visible. The bruises and cuts and broken bones would probably heal much more quickly.

Finn watched her move, pulling off his paint splattered shirt. In true Rachel Berry fashion, her shorts were short and her shirt was tight. He'd been glad he'd been on top of the ladder because he couldn't stand around her without it becoming glaringly obvious just how attracted to her he was. Walking up behind her, he put his arms around her waist and kissed her neck. He heard her suck in a breath and his entire body tightened.

"We're alone, right?" he asked, his hands moving up to cup her breasts. They hadn't been alone in the past week; there was always someone around.

Rachel moaned and leaned back into him. "We are." She'd missed touching him. She'd missed him touching her. Being around him all of the time and neither of those things happening had driven her crazy.

"I've missed you," he whispered. Finn moved his hand down her body, stopping at the waistband of her shorts. Rachel whimpered and nodded. Finn's hand dipped below the fabric and slid against her; he was amazed at how wet she was already. She let out a soft gasp as his fingers moved around her. His lips found her neck again, sucking lightly on the salty skin there. "You're so perfect."

Rachel felt like her legs were going to give out. She couldn't stop the little cries of pleasure that were escaping her mouth. She moved her hips back into his, her body tightening at his moan. His fingers moving faster, Rachel's breathing became harsher. She grabbed the hand kneading her breast and squeezed it, her other hand reaching up to tangle in his hair.

She fell apart in his hands. Finn wasn't able to stifle her moans, nor did he want to. Every sound she made moved over his body like a warm breath. "Rach," he said huskily. His body ached for her.

Rachel knew what he needed. She reached behind her and tugged his jeans down, then pulled her own down. Still in front of him, she bent over the table she'd put their things on.

This was new. Finn pushed inside her slowly, feeling her clench around him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, grabbing her hips and moving deeper into her. "Oh God," she moaned putting her head against the table.

"Is this okay?" he asked her, afraid to move.

Rachel moaned again in response, pushing herself against him. Finn's hand tightened on her hips and he began to move. He closed his eyes, moving his hands over her body. He reached around and under her shirt to cup her breasts again, pulling her to him.

The way he fit inside her, the way he moved against her, the way he loved her…Rachel couldn't breathe. Her whole body shook and she couldn't stop it. "Now," she gasped. "Finn, now."

Finn nodded, moving faster. Rachel screamed his name as she climaxed, putting her head down against the table again. Finn thrust into her a few more times, finding his own release. When he pulled out of her, Rachel quickly turned around and wrapped her arms around him.

Finn gently picked her up and held her. She wrapped her legs around his waist, looking up at him. "That was new," he said, smiling. He turned so that he was sitting on the table with her in his lap. He stared at her lips for a moment, then lowered his head and kissed them.

Rachel kissed him back. "I didn't think I was ever going to get you alone," she said against his lips.

Finn pulled back. "You've been wanting to get me alone?" he asked her, grinning.

Rachel nodded. "It's all I've been able to think about for the last week."

He laughed. "I'm glad I didn't know that. It was hard enough trying to get through this week."

Rachel smiled, watching his face. He had the cutest facial expressions. "You've been wanting to get me alone?"

"God, yes," he told her.

"Finn!" Rachel cried, hitting his arm.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"I've slept in your bed three nights in the last week and you didn't do anything! I thought you were too hurt."

Finn groaned. "I didn't think you were ready," he told her. "I thought that after everything that had happened, you might need some time."

"That's sweet, but no," Rachel told him. She laid her head back and laughed.

"This isn't funny!" Finn told her, trying to hide his grin.

"I love you," she said, kissing his cheek.

"I love you, too," he told her. "And I always will."

"Have you talked to your mom about New York?" she asked him.

"A little. I'll talk to her again tonight. Mr. Schue told me today that anyone in town would be willing to write me a letter of recommendation." He sighed. "I don't know if that's true, but I might need those letters."

Rachel looked into his eyes, smiling. "We're really going to do it, aren't we?"

Finn nodded. "You're not going to be able to get rid of me," he told her.

"I wouldn't want to," she whispered, kissing him.

Finn deepened the kiss, pulling her closer to him. "A whole week," he mumbled.

Rachel pulled away and rose on her knees at his side. "Let's make up for lost time," she whispered, grinding down against him.

Finn's hands moved to her waist, his thumbs rubbing her skin. "If you stay with me for a lifetime, I think that would almost make up for it," he told her.

"It's the least I can do," Rachel said, closing her eyes and sliding onto him. "Oh," she said, surprised again at how large he was.

Finn put his forehead to hers. "Are you okay?"

Rachel bit her lip. "So much better than okay," she told him as she began moving. "A whole week," she moaned.

Finn smiled, then got lost in Rachel.


	27. Chapter 27

They'd finally left the shop, but not until Rachel could barely walk. Finn couldn't help but grin at that. Damn, he loved his girlfriend. He knew that she rolled her eyes when he said she was perfect, but he meant it. He loved everything about her.

They ran by her house for her to change into her bathing suit, then by his to put on his trunks. He hoped his mom didn't say anything about how long it seemed to take them to get to the lake.

Before his dad had died, he'd built a small cabin by the lake. He'd planned on having at least two kids (boys, preferably), and was going to teach them how to hunt and fish. Carol had brought Finn out to fish when he was little, and they'd spent many summer nights sitting on the lake shore watching the waves. Now that he was older, he realized that his mom had been missing his father. He looked over at Rachel and once again thought about how lucky they'd been. Hopefully neither of them would have to miss each other for a long, long time.

"Finn!" Carol called to him when he parked the truck by the cabin. He noticed that all of his friends were already there.

"Looks like we're the last ones," he told Rachel, winking.

Rachel flushed. "We were painting, right?"

"Right," he said, laughing. "Hey Mom," he said, hugging his mother as he got out of the truck.

"I didn't think you two were ever going to get here!" Carol said. "You almost ruined the surprise."

"I'm sorry," Rachel said. "It's all my fault."

Carol waved her hand, smiling. "Don't worry about it, you guys just hurry up and get over here."

Finn took Rachel's hand and they joined their friends on the lake shore. "Hey man," Sam said. He had a guard over his hand to protect his cast from the water.

"Y'all have already been in the water?" Finn asked.

"Hell yeah," Mercedes said. "It's about 500 degrees out here." She hugged Rachel. "How you doing, girl?"

"I'm good," Rachel told her.

"Okay, everyone sit down," Burt said, coming out of the cabin. "Your surprise will be here in a few minutes."

The friends sat around, discussing what the surprise could be and making plans for the next days work. Mercedes's dad's office was almost finished, and they divided up tasks to share among themselves.

Hearing a car pulling up in the driveway, everyone stopped talking and turned to look. Quinn got out of her car, waving to them. She walked around to the passenger side and opened the door, helping Puck out.

"Noah?" Rachel said, standing up. Finn stood beside her. They'd been to visit Puck once, a few days ago. At the time, the doctors weren't sure when he'd be coming home. "Noah!" she cried, running towards him.

Noah's head was still bandaged, his leg and collarbone were still broken, and he looked like a giant bruise. Even looking like the walking dead, Finn had never been so happy to see his best friend.

Rachel reached him, stopping. "I'm not sure if I can hug you or not," she said.

"Hug me gently, Shorty," he said.

Rachel put her arms around her friend, resting her face in his chest. "I'm so sorry, Noah," she said, crying. "I'm so sorry this happened to you."

"Shh," Puck said, stroking her hair with his free hand. "We got them in the end, right?"

Rachel nodded, looking up at him. "I love you."

Puck grinned. "I love you too, Rach." He looked up at Finn. "Finn."

Finn hugged him. "Thank you, man," he told Puck. Pulling away, he wiped at tears they both pretended weren't there.

Puck looked out at their friends. "I thought this was a party?" he shouted, grinning.

Kurt started some music, and Burt went back to the grill. Most of the kids went back into the water. Puck sat on the shore with Rachel and Finn, watching the others swim around.

"How are things going with Quinn?" Rachel asked him.

"We're friends," Puck told her. He shrugged, then winced. "It's good." He sighed. "I can't believe such an epic fucking battle went down without me."

"I wished you'd been there," Finn told him. "I don't like to go to war without my wingman."

"I would have fucked shit up," Puck said in agreement. He looked at Rachel. "I'm glad that shit is over, though."

Rachel nodded. "Me too."

"How's everyone healing?" Puck asked.

Finn shrugged. "Some of us were hurt more than others. The football team has been decimated. Between your broken bones, Sam's broken wrist, Mike's cracked ribs and mine? We're screwed." He sighed. "That's not counting Blaine's arm and Artie's whole body."

"We'll heal," Puck said. "And then we'll destroy anything that comes our way. This is our year."

"How long until your cast comes off?" Rachel asked him.

"Four more weeks," he told her. "They said something about physical therapy." He shrugged. "Whatever it's going to take to get me back out there on the field."

"And we still have Glee," Rachel said, sitting up straighter. "I've been thinking about songs, and-"

"Not now, Berry," Puck told her, laughing. "Wait until we get to school."

Rachel sighed and Finn put his arm around her shoulder. "You can tell me later," he whispered in her ear. Rachel beamed at him.

Puck was watching them. "You two, man. I was so worried about you two." He threw a rock into the lake, wincing when his shoulder moved. "I guess you're my best friends," he said gruffly.

"Aw, we love you too," Finn told him, grinning.

"Finn," Rachel said, rolling her eyes. She looked at Puck. "We really do, though, Noah. You're our best friend, too."

Puck smiled, ducking his head a little. "School's going to be weird with so many kids gone," he said, changing the subject from anything that had to do with feelings.

Rachel shrugged. "I'm excited. No more slushies, ever."

"No more shit in the locker room," Puck said, grinning.

"No more hiding out in the Glee room with KISS make up on our faces," Finn said.

Rachel put her arms around both boys. "We're going to rule the school!" she said triumphantly.

"We'll see," Puck said, but he had to smile at her optimism.

As the darkness rolled in, they built a bonfire and roasted marshmallows. Burt and Carol left to give them some time alone.

"This is good," Santana said, licking sticky marshmallow off of her fingers. She looked at her friends. "Not just the marshmallows. Being here with all of you…I guess Brittany was right." She looked at her best friend. "You're all like my family. Even Rachel," she said with a slight laugh.

Rachel smiled. "I've decided that you might not be the devil," she told Santana. "Maybe." Santana laughed again.

Finn wrapped his arms around Rachel and she leaned back into him. "You guys really came through for us," he told his friends. "When things got hard, you didn't give up. You're the bravest people I know."

"I don't know how you and Rachel made it," Quinn told him. She shook her head. "When it was obvious that they wanted Rachel and why…I think I would have left town. I wouldn't have been brave enough to stay here and fight."

"Quinn, you did stay, remember?" Rachel reminded her. "They gave you an ultimatum and you didn't back down."

"I think we all realized that we have something special in us and we weren't willing to let them take that," Sam said.

"Are you talking about the plant you found in the greenhouse?" Mike asked him.

"Oh shit, is that still there?" Puck asked. "I wish you guys had picked it up for me."

"I told you," Kurt said pointedly to Mike. He looked at Blaine and smiled. "I feel terrible for Blaine. He just started going to McKinley and we've already been at war. Literally."

Blaine put his arm around Kurt. "I already knew that Kurt was brave for coming back and standing up for what he believed in," he told his new friends. "But I didn't realize what the rest of you were going through too. I can't imagine how hard it must have been."

"But we had each other," Mercedes said, smiling at Tina. "We've always had each other."

"We were a little more divided," Lauren spoke up. "Now we're just one big, cohesive group. I like that."

"I like it too," Finn said. "When Rachel and I go to New York, we'll really miss you guys."

"You won't miss us," Kurt said. "We're going too." Blaine nodded.

"I'm thinking about going into the Air Force," Puck said. Everyone looked shocked. "What? You get paid, you get to travel, and I'll look like a stud in my uniform. It's win win."

"I've been thinking about doing the same thing," Sam admitted.

"Not me," Mike said. "I'm going to try to get into Julliard. If not them, then another dance school. I know what I want to do."

"Me too," Brittany said. She sighed. "If I graduate."

Santana patted Brittany on the back. "I don't know what I want to do yet," she said. "But I've got a whole year to figure it out."

"Me too," Quinn said, nodding. "I'm not staying in Lima, but I'm not sure where I'm going to go." She smiled at Rachel. "Anything's possible, right?"

Rachel nodded, thinking about her conversation with Quinn regarding that very topic. "Anything." She looked up at Finn, thinking for the ten millionth time how amazing it was to have found her true love in high school. And for him to love her back.

"Whatever I decide to do," Tina said, "I'm going to be amazing at it. And it's because I've had you people around, cheering me on."

"I feel like I'm in an infomercial for a group home or something," Puck said, making a face.

"Noah!" Rachel said, laughing.

He grimaced. "I don't do well with _feelings_," he said.

"Tell me about it," Quinn, Santana, Lauren, Mercedes and Rachel said in unison.

"Well that's just wrong," he grumbled as his friends laughed.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, each looking into the fire and thinking about how their lives had been changed by the events of the last couple of weeks. Sure, they had some scars…but they were stronger, better. Now they really _were _a family.

Finn looked down at Rachel, kissing her cheek. He knew, without a doubt, that all of this had happened because of her. It was because of her that he wanted to be a better person and stayed in Glee Club. Because of that, the cheerleaders had joined, then the football players. The fact that they got better kept the rest of the kids in the club, and now they'd stood up to the bullies that had beaten them down for so long and won. Whether they won Nationals this year or not, Finn knew that they were already winners.

Though it had taken a war, they knew who they were now. And they were awesome.


End file.
